Andrew Cooper MP: speeches

Speeches

• 3 Apr 2025 · UK-US Trade and Tariffs · Hansard source

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  I thank the Secretary of State and his colleagues for all he has done so far in negotiating an economic partnership deal with the US. The automotive sector is an incredibly important one for Cheshire and Merseyside, both for manufacturers such as Bentley, Vauxhall and Jaguar Land Rover, and the wider supply chain, which supports the employment of tens of thousands. The US is the biggest export market for Bentley Motors in Crewe, so it is likely to be at the sharp end of the tariffs. We all hope that my right hon. Friend’s calm-headed approach has meant that we are in the best position to secure a deal. What specific support does he have in mind for the automotive sector to help it weather the storm?

• 2 Apr 2025 · Green Book Review · Hansard source

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  Does the Minister agree that in recent years we have seen such a reduction in local government funding that local governments have lost the capacity to develop long-term transport projects and a pipeline of projects, so when the Department for Transport comes along and says, “We’ve got 20 million quid burning a hole in our pocket—what can you spend it on?” many authorities are not in a position to be able to do that? Is that something he thinks needs to be rectified as part of the comprehensive spending review in the 10-year transport plan?

• 2 Apr 2025 · Green Book Review · Hansard source

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  It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Pritchard, and I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Congleton (Mrs Russell) for securing this timely debate. It is a pleasure to follow my hon. Friends the Members for Loughborough (Dr Sandher), for Warrington South (Sarah Hall) and for Cramlington and Killingworth (Emma Foody). I do not believe that there is any rule about repetition in this Chamber, but I will none the less do my best to express my points in a new and interesting way. The Green Book is part of a colourful spectrum of current Government guidance and standards documents, which alongside the Aqua Book, the Magenta Book, the Orange Book and 19 other publications and pieces of supplementary guidance forms the basis of how the Treasury appraises policies, programmes and projects. On top of that, several Departments have issued their own interpretation of the guidance as it applies to them, thankfully avoiding extending the colourful metaphors any further. That complexity—well over 1,000 pages of guidance—is at the root of the criticism of the small industry and almost mysticism around navigating the assessment process and of the poor outcomes to which it leads. Local authorities and other public bodies, which have been grappling with cuts to their non-statutory functions for more than a decade, are the ones putting forward investment cases, yet they often lack the capability and capacity to deal with that complexity, which has several unintended consequences. My hon. Friend the Member for Congleton referred to the expensive consultant bonanza that that complexity has created. It also creates a world in which those organisations that do have the capacity, or indeed the consultancy budget, are more likely to succeed, not necessarily those areas that are most in need of investment. Most importantly, that complexity has led to an over-reliance on benefit-to-cost ratio to drive decision making. Because salaries are higher in London and the south-east, and because high-value sectors tend to be located here, it will always be easier to demonstrate a higher return on investment than elsewhere in the country. We have a few decades of evidence that says that that is exactly what happens. Over the period from 2008 to 2024, had Governments instead chosen to fund the greater south-east at the same level as the England-wide average for growth spending, they would have freed up over £100 billion. That money could have been used to invest in infrastructure and people, narrow inequalities and address specific regional needs. The Johnson Government’s review into the Green Book in 2020 was supposed to fix that. It said: “Current appraisal practice risks undermining the Government’s ambition to ‘level up’ poorer regions and to achieve other strategic objectives unless there is a step change improvement.” It went on to make a series of recommendations to improve practice. However, it is widely recognised that little has actually changed. The Department for Transport guidance, for example, still includes value-for-money categories derived entirely from the BCR. Local authorities tell me it is still common practice for response letters to open with sentences such as, “We note that the BCR for the proposed scheme is 1.8.” That belies the intent of the 2020 review. To my knowledge, the terms of reference for the 2025 review have not been published, but when they are they must seek to address those points on culture. The review must end the arbitrary BCR thresholds across Government. It must simplify, increase public transparency on calculations and require publication of judgments on why conclusions have been drawn and decisions made. Most importantly, we must not lose sight of what we are trying to achieve. It is imperative that we address regional inequality. Doing so is a moral, political and economic necessity. We have allowed some parts of the country to be left out, to the detriment of economic regeneration and social cohesion. We have overheated other parts of the country, leading to a housing crisis and even more pressure on the cost of living. We should seize the opportunity to rebalance public spending, drive economic growth in areas that have suffered from under-investment, and use the strategic focus that comes with devolution to make investment go further. This is the moment—the opportunity—not just to talk about handing power and money to our regions, but to set the rules to ensure that that happens.

• 25 Mar 2025 · Community Hospitals · Hansard source

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  A new state-of-the-art surgical centre is set to open at the Victoria infirmary in Northwich in the next few weeks. The new facility will be a centre of excellence and a regional hub for outstanding cataract care, and it is an excellent example of how we can reduce pressure on our major hospitals, while making the best use of facilities in the heart of our communities. Will the Secretary of State join me in congratulating the Mid Cheshire hospitals trust on completing this project? Can I invite him to join me on a visit to the centre in the coming months?

• 25 Mar 2025 · Construction Standards: New Build Homes · Hansard source

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  It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Ms Jardine. I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Sherwood Forest (Michelle Welsh) on securing this debate. As my hon. Friend the Member for Congleton (Mrs Russell) has previewed, I will focus my comments on the collapse of Stewart Milne Homes North West, and the lasting consequences it has had for many families across my constituency and no doubt the wider north-west region. Stewart Milne Homes went into administration in January last year, leaving several housing developments half-built, although the three in my constituency had been completed for some years. Nevertheless, homeowners have been left burdened with a potential financial nightmare, as streets and sewers were never properly adopted by the local highways authority or the water company. That has created a situation where residents, who have every right to expect a functioning, safe environment, are instead left with a looming threat of significant costs. The reason for the predicament is simple: there was either no bonded section 38 agreement in place with the local council, or no bonded section 104 agreement with the water company for the adoption of sewers—or, in some cases, neither—despite residents having deeds, on completion of their sale, showing that the estate would be adopted. I can only speak with direct knowledge of my own constituency, but I am aware, through research undertaken by my team and through conversations with the local authority and with United Utilities, that that is far from a unique situation, leading one to wonder whether Stewart Milne either acted negligently, or actively mis-sold properties on the basis that their roads and sewers would be publicly maintained. My hon. Friend the Member for Congleton makes a reasonable point about director’s duties in that circumstance. Without those legal agreements, there is no guarantee that local authorities or utility companies will take responsibility for maintaining those essential services. As a result, the burden of making these streets and sewers adoptable—essentially bringing them up to standard—is being shifted directly on to the homeowners. Families who have already invested in their homes, often using their lifelong savings, are now facing huge, unexpected bills. That is a situation that residents in one development in Middlewich are currently facing. Despite the estate having been practically complete for a decade, the lack of an appropriate agreement means that the sewers on the development have not yet been adopted by United Utilities. Initial estimates from the inspections to date suggest that costs for the required remedial works could run into thousands. Costs are therefore liable to fall on residents. These homeowners are being forced to pay for poor planning, poor practices and poor execution, through no fault of their own. We cannot and must not allow this situation to continue unchecked. There is a fundamental need for greater oversight and accountability in the house building sector. The mistakes of Stewart Milne should not become the burden of individuals affected by them, and the gaps in regulation that allowed that to happen must be addressed so that no homeowner is ever left in this position again. We need clearer, stronger regulations on the adoption of streets and sewers. Developers must be held accountable for ensuring that all necessary agreements are in place before any properties are occupied, not after the damage is done. On the utility side, that can be done very easily by implementing section 42 of the Flood and Water Management Act, but I would argue that an equivalent is needed for highways. The financial cost of completing unfinished works should not fall on the shoulders of families who are innocent victims in this situation. In addition, there must be better protection for homeowners in the event of a developer’s failure. We cannot allow this pattern of abandonment and negligence to continue, with large companies walking away without facing the consequences and residents being left with the fallout. We must ensure that this situation is rectified and that no more homeowners are left to bear the burden of a developer’s failure.

• 19 Mar 2025 · Transport Connectivity: North-west England · Hansard source

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  It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Dr Murrison. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Leigh and Atherton (Jo Platt) for securing and so ably leading this debate. Mid Cheshire’s towns play an important role in our nation’s economy as one of only two sources of rock salt, as well as chemical, pharmaceutical and plastics manufacturing. Yet when I speak to businesses—or indeed anyone—they tell me that poor transport infrastructure is one of the biggest issues holding back businesses, jobs and investments in Northwich, Winsford and Middlewich. That is far from a new phenomenon; the Middlewich eastern bypass project has been the subject of local campaigns for more than 40 years, and was shamefully kicked into the long grass by the previous Government, despite earlier promises to fund it. Campaigns for better sustainable transport, such as more frequent rail services from Northwich and Winsford, a station for Middlewich— I sympathise with the point made by my hon. Friend the Member for Leigh and Atherton, as Middlewich is the largest town in Cheshire without a railway station—or a functioning bus service anywhere in the constituency, have hit barriers to progress. While I would love to use my time to ask the Minister to look kindly upon any or all of those projects, the issue is deeper than any one single project—although he is of course welcome to intervene. We can and must fix the foundations of our economy, but we must also tackle the structures that systemically disadvantage our region—particularly areas outside the big cities—in the allocation of infrastructure investment. On that, I will limit myself to one point, which is fundamental to this debate. The Green Book, developed by the Treasury, is the Government’s primary guidance for evaluating and appraising public sector projects on value for money, but it utterly fails to adjust for regional disparities. The reality is that, as of right now, salaries are higher and high-value sectors are more likely to be located in London and the south-east than they are in the north-west. On a like-for-like basis, it will always be easier to demonstrate a higher return on investment from a project here in London than it will be in my constituency. That is a problem. It is a problem because it undervalues the benefit of economic regeneration or better social cohesion, and it underprices the exacerbating effect that it has on London’s housing crisis, the pressure on its public services and the benefit that will be brought by distributing growth across the country. IPPR North estimated in 2020 that, on transport alone, if the north had seen the same per-person investment as London over the last decade, it would have received £66 billion more. The Chancellor has announced a review of the Green Book; I urge the Minister to exercise whatever influence he has to ensure that this moment is seized to finally fix this issue, which has been a barrier to growth for so long. Our region, from our big cities to our small towns and from our industrial powerhouses to our rural hinterland, is ambitious for our future. We are hungry to play our part in our country’s economic recovery. We are impatient for the Government to see our potential after so many years of undelivered promises. This Government finally have us facing in the right direction on valuing and investing in our bus network, and on ensuring that railways deliver for passengers, not shareholders. They are progressing devolution in Cheshire and Lancashire that will finally give us the powers we need to set our own transport investment priorities. I hope that the comprehensive spending review and the Green Book review are opportunities to go further—not just to talk about handing power and money to the regions, but to set the rules to ensure that it happens.

• 19 Mar 2025 · Down’s Syndrome · Hansard source

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  It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Turner. I declare an interest as co-chair of the all-party parliamentary group on Down syndrome. I congratulate the right hon. Member for Beverley and Holderness (Graham Stuart) on his comprehensive speech and on securing this debate, which holds immense significance for individuals with Down syndrome and their families, especially as we approach World Down Syndrome Day on Friday. That day was chosen because the 21st day of the third month represents the triplication of the 21st chromosome, which is the cause of Down syndrome. I will focus my comments today on the Down Syndrome Act, a landmark piece of legislation that recognises the unique needs of people with Down syndrome, and the ongoing work to update and implement the guidance that will help bring it to life. As we have already heard, there are an estimated 47,000 people with Down syndrome people in the UK, yet, despite its being the most common chromosomal condition, people with Down syndrome continue to face barriers to achieving their full potential. That is where the Down Syndrome Act comes in. For the first time ever, we have legislation focused specifically on this community, taking into account the distinct health, developmental and educational needs unique to people with Down syndrome. With the right interventions, many people with Down syndrome can lead full, independent lives, attending mainstream schools, gaining employment and participating fully in society. To achieve that and to improve life outcomes for people with Down syndrome, we need more than just general disability support: we need Down syndrome-specific strategies. This is where the long-overdue guidance will play its part. The guidance will determine the success of the Act and be a practical road map that provides clarity on how the principles of the Act should be implemented. Without it, the Act will just remain words on the page. The preparation and implementation of the guidance, however, has faced challenges. We know that there have been significant delays in updating the guidance. More importantly, there are concerns that the current draft of the guidance does not reflect the original intent of the Act and lacks the Down syndrome-specific focus in line with the Government’s statutory duty. I thank the Minister for Care, my hon. Friend the Member for Aberafan Maesteg (Stephen Kinnock), for writing to me yesterday to assure me that he has listened to those concerns, and that he is engaging with stakeholders and working with all relevant Departments to produce a second draft of the guidance, with a view to putting it out for consultation by the summer. My ask of the Minister is to ensure that the second draft of the guidance reflects the feedback raised by the National Down Syndrome Policy Group, the Down’s Syndrome Association and others. I am sure he will agree that we need guidance that is robust, inclusive, and reflective of the needs of the community it is intended to support. Importantly, an accountability mechanism must be included to ensure that individuals and organisations responsible for the implementation are held to their obligations. Additional direction and training should be considered for external bodies to help them to understand fully their roles in effectively implementing the guidance in the first place. I hope the Minister will give due consideration to these points as the second draft is prepared. The Down Syndrome Act and its guidance offer an incredible opportunity to improve outcomes for people with Down syndrome, but we must ensure that the guidance reflects the specific needs of the community it aims to serve. To ensure that that is the case, I hope the Minister will agree, on behalf of the Minister for Care, to meet with representatives of the APPG on Down syndrome and the National Down Syndrome Policy Group to discuss and address our key concerns. By working together, we can create a future where people with Down syndrome are not only included, but truly empowered to reach their full potential.

• 18 Mar 2025 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  T4. I welcome the plans brought forward last week to provide money off for people living near new energy infrastructure. Does the Minister agree that this is yet another thing that the Conservatives promised, but never had the ability to deliver?

• 18 Mar 2025 · Stations: Step-free Access · Hansard source

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  I congratulate the hon. Member on his work on the station in his constituency. In my constituency, Northwich station has been without a step-free crossing since 2013, when the barrow crossing was closed. He will be aware that the Government have set out, as part of Great British Railways’ six objectives, that accessibility should be part of that. I am sure he welcomes that. Does he agree with me that we need to see another round of Access for All applications while Great British Railways is being established, so that there can be a pipeline of work while that is going on?

• 10 Mar 2025 · Regional Improvement for Standards and Excellence Teams · Hansard source

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  In my area, the Government have identified six stuck schools in Cheshire East and two in Cheshire West. Can the Secretary of State explain the support that will be made available to them to drive up standards? What levers do RISE teams have if schools choose not to follow their advice?

• 10 Mar 2025 · Regional Improvement for Standards and Excellence Teams · Hansard source

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  3. What progress her Department has made on establishing regional improvement for standards and excellence teams.

• 6 Mar 2025 · Infected Blood Compensation Scheme · Hansard source

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  5. What recent progress he has made on establishing an infected blood compensation scheme.

• 6 Mar 2025 · Infected Blood Compensation Scheme · Hansard source

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  Last year, I was contacted by a constituent who tragically lost her husband to infected blood and I am continuing to support her. There is an understandable lack of trust between victims and the authorities after such a long wait for justice, and my constituent is concerned about the urgency in compensating affected families. When he spoke in the House last month, the Minister committed to producing an easy-read version of the regulations. Can he say when that is likely to be published and will he commit to full transparency on the progress of settling claims?

• 6 Mar 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  Last week, I had the privilege of opening the new block at Sir John Deane’s sixth-form college in Northwich. It was revealed at the event that the Sixth Form Colleges Association has confirmed that, once again, Johnny Deane’s is one of the country’s leading sixth-form colleges, having both the highest attainment and the highest value added of all large mainstream sixth-form colleges. Will the Leader of the House join me in congratulating Sir John Deane’s on that incredible achievement, and will she allow time for a debate on the vital role that sixth-form colleges play?

• 25 Feb 2025 · SEND Education Support · Hansard source

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  It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Twigg. I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Suffolk Coastal (Jenny Riddell-Carpenter) on continuing to keep this important issue on the parliamentary agenda. For many of us, this is a defining issue that motivated us to stand for election; to try and bring about meaningful change on behalf of SEND families who are living with a constant fight for recognition of the challenges they face, for a diagnosis, for mental health support and for the right educational setting. I could use double or triple my speaking time today describing the cases that come across my desk week after week of children who are not just struggling to get the right support today, but whose lives could have been different if their needs had been identified and met early. Instead, I am going to go through some of the things that I believe—and that parents and professionals I have met with over the last eight months believe—will make the difference and start to bring this broken system under control. I will limit myself to two things, and I hope the Minister will respond and take it as read that I welcome the steps she has already taken to deliver a more inclusive system. First, there is much more to be done in partnership with the NHS. The time it takes to get a diagnosis for autism or ADHD varies wildly across the country and has vastly increased in recent years. Meanwhile, access to child and adolescent mental health services is now being rationed in a way that means only the most serious referrals are expected, with the perverse effect that children who are not seen get worse. There will be no fix to the SEND crisis that does not also address the crisis in CAMHS, so I urge the Minister to continue to work closely with her colleagues in the Department for Health and Social Care and get school-based mental health support rolled out as quickly as possible. Secondly, although the fix to the SEND crisis is not all about money, that does not mean that money does not need to be spent—particularly on capital. The reality is, although we need more inclusivity, we also need co-located provision in mainstream schools and more alternative provision. In my constituency in particular, we have a big shortage in specialist social, emotional and mental health difficulties places which is affecting life chances today—the cost of which will be borne by other parts of the state in future.

• 24 Feb 2025 · Breakfast Clubs: Early Adopters · Hansard source

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  I am delighted that five schools in my constituency—Hartford Manor, Over Hall, Winsford High Street, Victoria Road and St Joseph’s—will be among the first to offer breakfast clubs. I pay tribute to the leaders of those schools, who, by putting forward their schools, will ensure that children in my area start the day ready to learn. The evidence suggests that this will improve attainment, increase attendance and enhance wellbeing, while boosting those children’s overall life chances. To ensure that all children can benefit from free breakfast clubs, can my right hon. Friend tell me what steps are being taken to ensure that breakfast clubs are inclusive and accessible for children with SEND?

• 12 Feb 2025 · Fuel Poverty: England · Hansard source

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  It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Efford. I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Normanton and Hemsworth (Jon Trickett) on securing this important debate on a pressing issue that has plagued our society for too long. It is a travesty that, in a nation as prosperous as ours, more than 3 million households are struggling to keep their homes warm and their lights on. If my hon. Friend is correct, that number is perhaps 8.9 million; however, it is at least 13.1% of households, and in parts of Northwich in my constituency, it can go as high as 20%. Those statistics not only show the scale of the problem, but highlight a reality that affects the health, wellbeing and dignity of too many people throughout our communities. This crisis did not emerge overnight: over the last decade and a half, the action—or inaction—of the previous Government not only failed to address fuel poverty but made things worse. Nowhere is that failure more evident than in the Conservative’s disastrous record on home insulation and energy efficiency. In 2013, David Cameron's Government infamously decided to “cut the green crap”, leading to insulation rates falling off a cliff edge and never sufficiently recovering. That reckless decision has cost UK households an estimated £2.5 billion in higher energy bills since. When that Government eventually acknowledged the crisis and promised to upgrade millions of homes, their attempts at intervention were nothing short of chaotic. The green homes grant scheme, launched with great fanfare in 2020, promised homeowners £1.5 billion in vouchers for insulation and energy-saving improvements. Yet, within months, the scheme collapsed in total failure—scrapped after just six months, having delivered insulation upgrades to just 10% of the homes it was supposed to help. Contractors were not paid, homeowners were left stranded and the Government wasted millions. Meanwhile, Britain’s housing stock remains among the least energy-efficient in Europe, with millions of homes leaking heat because of inadequate insulation. The impact of these failings has been stark, with higher energy bills, colder homes and increased fuel poverty. It has been great to see this Government committed to reversing that damage and to bringing energy bills down sustainably for the long term by improving the energy efficiency of our homes through the warm homes plan. This will not only help to tackle fuel poverty, but reduce carbon emissions, create green jobs and help us to meet our climate targets. I recognise that a significant part of the scheme will be delivered by social landlords, which will avoid many of the issues encountered with the previous Government’s programme. However, the boiler upgrade scheme operates on a voucher basis, so it would be good to hear from the Minister what the Department has learned from the previous Government’s rushed implementation of the green homes grant, and how those issues will be avoided in our plan. The contrast could not be clearer: while the Conservatives spent years failing to deliver on their promises, we are getting on with things. We are determined to ensure that no family is forced to live in a freezing home. Through our investment, regulation, and commitment to a fairer, greener future, we can tackle fuel poverty. We can bring down bills and deliver energy security for the long term.

• 11 Feb 2025 · Mental Health Services · Hansard source

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  I am regularly contacted by constituents who are concerned that their children are not receiving the mental health care they need. Having met GPs in Winsford, I know that there are clear concerns that access to child and adolescent mental health services is being rationed to the point that it has become almost inaccessible to all but the most severe cases. Will my hon. Friend tell me what progress has been made towards our commitment to provide specialist mental health professionals in schools, ensuring that there is early intervention that prevents issues from escalating?

• 3 Feb 2025 · School Accountability and Intervention · Hansard source

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  The laser focus on stuck schools will be incredibly important for the life chances of children who have been failed for too long. I am pleased that the Government are putting their money where their mouth is, with up to £100,000 for each school. Ofsted research makes the point that in some unstuck schools, the role of MATs in raising expectations and developing curriculum subject expertise has been critical, but in others that have remained stuck, the MATs have not been effective and are not providing the right quality support. Will the Minister say more about how RISE teams can work with MATs to improve the support that they offer?

• 28 Jan 2025 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  Humanist marriage has been legal in Scotland for 20 years but continues to wait to be legalised in England and Wales. The Law Commission made recommendations two years ago on clarifying the law, but when asked to set out a timetable for action, the Minister in the other place could only respond, “in the fullness of time.” —[ Official Report, House of Lords, 2 December 2024; Vol. 841, c. 910.] Can the Minister set out the timetable or, alternatively, say when the Government will make an order to end the long wait for humanist marriage?

• 27 Jan 2025 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  T4. This morning I visited Cledford primary school in Middlewich to speak in their school assembly. During my visit, the headteacher proudly showed me the school-based nursery that staff went above and beyond to get ready for the start of this term. Will the Minister join me in congratulating Cledford on getting the nursery up and running, and can he outline the role that school-based nurseries will play in helping children achieve their early learning goals?

• 24 Jan 2025 · Climate and Nature Bill · Hansard source

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  I pay tribute to the hon. Member for South Cotswolds (Dr Savage) for all the work she has done and the courage she has shown to get us to this point. I think I am right in saying that she learned her rowing craft in Northwich in my constituency, and the strength and tenacity she has shown today is typical of members of that rowing club. I thank her for what she has done. It is a privilege to have the opportunity to speak on this issue today, because, alongside the fight against child poverty, it is one of the core issues that defines why I entered politics and how we must act not for today but for tomorrow. We must take immediate and bold action to secure a sustainable future for our planet, our environment and our children, who will inherit the world that we shape today. The climate crisis is the defining challenge of our times, and bold action is essential to combating it. Climate change and environmental destruction are not distant threats. They are realities that we face today, and they pose an existential threat. The science is absolutely clear: our planet is warming at an alarming rate, and the resultant consequences are dire. As the Met Office reported just a couple of weeks ago, 2024 was the warmest year on record globally and the first year that was likely more than 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels. From rising sea levels to devastating floods and wildfires to unprecedented heatwaves, the effects of climate change are being seen today and they impact everyone.

• 24 Jan 2025 · Climate and Nature Bill · Hansard source

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  I will not, because a lot of Members are trying to get in, and I want to make sure that everyone has a chance to speak. I am convinced that to tackle this challenge, we must commit to a just transition, with ambitious targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions that not only put us on track to meet our global commitments but pave the way for a cleaner, greener future for generations to come. We must protect our precious natural ecosystems. The biodiversity crisis is a pressing issue, with species declining at an unprecedented rate. The World Wildlife Fund reported in October that between 1970 and 2020, there was a catastrophic 73% decline in wildlife populations. It is essential that we not only seek to halt that decline but prioritise the restoration and preservation of habitats.

• 24 Jan 2025 · Climate and Nature Bill · Hansard source

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  I would rather not, as so many Members are looking to speak. By safeguarding our ecosystems, we not only protect wildlife but enhance our own quality of life. Healthy ecosystems provide clean air, safe water and fertile land, which are essential resources for our communities and economy. We must seize this opportunity to drive innovation and create green jobs. As we transition to a low-carbon economy, we can harness the power of renewable energy, sustainable agriculture and cutting-edge technology. This transition will not only help us meet our climate goals but stimulate economic growth and employment opportunities in sectors that are vital for our future. Investing in a sustainable economy is not merely an environmental imperative; it is an immense economic opportunity. Too often, we hear opponents of tackling the climate crisis present this as all cost. I ask them, “Why would you leave this fantastic opportunity to be a global leader in these technologies and to sell our expertise all over the world to someone else?” I know that the Government recognise this, and I welcome the action that has already been taken not only to get us back on track to meeting our climate commitments, but to create hundreds of thousands of good jobs and drive investment throughout our country. Removing the ban on onshore wind in England, committing £21.7 billion for carbon capture, approving solar projects offering almost 2 GW of power, launching Great British Energy and delivering record-breaking renewables auctions are vital steps in delivering clean power by 2030 and accelerating to net zero. Moreover, we know that the public back action on climate, nature and the environment, with Oxford University estimating support at about 80% globally. Indeed, I have heard people across Mid Cheshire express their concerns on these matters. Prior to the general election, I participated in a dedicated climate and nature hustings organised jointly by Sustainable Northwich and Winsford Sustainability Partners, which have done a tremendous amount locally to raise awareness of these issues, provide forums for discussing topics such as carbon capture and storage, work with local schools on air quality projects, and much more. I take this opportunity to thank them for the work that they have done and continue to do. Along with people across the country, those organisations are increasingly aware of the urgency of the situation and are calling for bold action. By listening to the voices of the people we serve, we can foster collaboration between Government, businesses and local communities to ensure that we create a collective response to climate change that is inclusive, effective and decisive. According to the Local Government Association, more than 300 local authorities have declared a climate emergency, and nearly two thirds of councils in England aim to be carbon neutral by 2030. I am particularly proud that our first act as an administration after the local elections in 2019 was to declare a climate emergency in Cheshire West and Chester. Perhaps there is a stereotype of Cheshire as a rural county full of cheese, cats and “Real Housewives” but, at the time of the declaration, Cheshire West was the fourth highest polluting borough for carbon dioxide emissions, with only Neath Port Talbot, North Lincolnshire and Birmingham ranking higher. The borough’s climate emergency response plan notes: “Cheshire West and Chester is, in many ways, a microcosm of the UK. Few places can claim to have such a variety of key emitters and sectors located in one area.” There is a heavy concentration of industry in the north of the borough in Ellesmere Port. There are some who would have us deindustrialise and roll back on manufacturing or any carbon-intensive process. We have seen the consequences of such action. We have seen what happens when the rug is pulled from under communities with nothing to replace it, and how long it can take for a place to recover. And yet, time is of the essence. By providing strategic leadership, we have seen growth in the hydrogen cluster, investment in sustainable aviation fuel production and the approval of a first-of-its-kind carbon capture and storage facility that will have an effect equivalent to taking nearly 200,000 cars off the road each year. The latter was made possible by this Government’s commitment to providing certainty for business and investing in this energy cluster and the industries of the future. Of course, this is not entirely down to the actions of the Government or the council, but if we set the challenge, lead on it and show businesses that we are prepared to back them, they will respond, as we have seen with industry-led initiatives such as Net Zero North West. In my constituency, Tata is in the process of developing another world first. For a long time, Northwich has been synonymous with the chemistry of salt, and Tata, following completion of its EcoKarb carbon capture and utilisation plant, has announced that it will build a world-first facility to make the first sodium bicarbonate with net zero carbon emissions. Let us all move forward together on this fantastic work.

• 20 Jan 2025 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  As my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has said, there are 160,000 children in temporary accommodation, and in many cases the definition of “temporary” is being stretched to breaking point. Does she agree that the Government’s homelessness strategy needs to look specifically at the outcomes for children who have experienced long-term or repeated spells in temporary accommodation?