Andrew Snowden MP: speeches

Speeches

• 10 Dec 2024 · Finance Bill · Hansard source

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  The right hon. Member has touched on an important point. Meeting the Government’s 2030 target and creating the green jobs to which he has referred will require two technologies that have not yet been tried and tested at scale, carbon capture and battery storage. Why would we gamble such an important 100,000-job industry in favour of technologies that have not even been tried and tested at scale?

• 10 Dec 2024 · Finance Bill · Hansard source

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  At the heart of this, when we have comparisons to Norway, is a sheer focus on trying to squeeze as much taxation out of the industry as possible, without a focus on how to become more competitive. Does the hon. Gentleman agree that what we need for jobs and for energy security in the UK is to compare ourselves to the most competitive oil and gas economies in the world, and not those that squeeze and tax the most out of the industry and kill jobs?

• 10 Dec 2024 · Finance Bill · Hansard source

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  Does the hon. Gentleman accept that capital reliefs are about attracting investment that creates jobs and secures energy security for this country? If UK countries are to make such investments, we have to be competitive in the global market. If we do not make those investments, what does he think will happen to the industry and the 100,000 jobs that go with it?

• 28 Nov 2024 · Grassroots Football Clubs: Financial Resilience · Hansard source

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  Grassroots football is supported by medium and large community-based football clubs, such as AFC Fylde in my constituency, Chorley FC in your constituency, Mr Speaker, and Wigan Athletic in the Secretary of State’s constituency. Wigan sadly posted a £13 million loss for the last financial year. How does the Secretary of State think the club can make itself more financially resilient, given the significant impact that the need to pay national insurance contributions will have on their finances?

• 28 Nov 2024 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  Thank you, Mr Speaker. I echo my support for the issue raised hon. Member for Rochdale (Paul Waugh)—my sister had epilepsy and required lifesaving brain surgery when she was young, so I know the impact it has on families and individuals. The Leader of the House will know that I previously asked her about the Typhoon assembly line at the Wharton site. Since then, I have asked questions of Defence Ministers in Ukraine statements; I have requested a meeting with the Secretary of State for Defence; I have met the unions; and I have submitted a written question to see whether the order for 24 Typhoon jets for the RAF is included in the Budget. It is not, and we have since heard rumours that the RAF may wish to have American-produced F-35s instead of British-produced Typhoon fighters. I then submitted a further written question to ask what the plans are to support businesses such as BAE Systems to maintain the workforce that they need for the global combat air programme, and I have received an absolute word salad of an answer talking about partnership working and future procurement strategies. Can we have a statement from the Ministry of Defence on its plans for this important area for sovereign defence capabilities and for jobs in Fylde and across Lancashire?

• 25 Nov 2024 · Antisocial Behaviour: Town Centres · Hansard source

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  As a former police and crime commissioner for Lancashire, I worked very closely with the last Government on Operation Centurion, which was about really focusing in on antisocial behaviour through more visible patrols and better partnership working. We know that a lot of antisocial behaviour is egged on by a very small minority, and some of the most serious crimes related to antisocial behaviour are driven by that small minority. Without restricting freedoms, banning orders do not work and engagement with youth offending teams does not work, because they are all voluntary. What measures do the Government intend to bring in as part of their new zero tolerance zones that will be different from what currently exists, to make it really zero tolerance?

• 19 Nov 2024 · Passenger Railway Services (Public Ownership) Bill · Hansard source

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  Will the hon. Member give way?

• 19 Nov 2024 · Passenger Railway Services (Public Ownership) Bill · Hansard source

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  I want to speak to Lords amendment 2. I will briefly make a few points first, but I fully understand that I should not go through the debate we have already had on this Bill. That debate was about Conservative Members’ belief that we will drive improvement in the railways by putting the passenger at the heart of things, and by ensuring greater competition and private sector investment, while the Labour party argued through its manifesto that it can do that through the nationalisation of rail. We have had that debate, but Lords amendment 2 is about pragmatic ways in which the proposals can be better implemented, with the passenger at the heart of them. I fully accept that we are not having the debate over again; in fact, it is quite refreshing to see the Labour party not breaking one of its manifesto promises, but instead actually pushing on with the Bill. As I said in my intervention, c2c has a 94% passenger satisfaction rate, but it is one of the first franchises that would lose its licence. Labour’s Lord Snape said on 6 November that it would make no sense to remove a franchise such as the Greater Anglia one, which has great public support for the way in which it operates its services. In response, the Minister said that amendment 1 would not make sense, because we could simply play the game of targets. However, the Government can play the game of targets whether or not the amendment is made. It does not really matter whether the Government can stack targets or cut data a certain way. We need to call things out, and put passengers and improved services at the heart of the Bill. Lords amendments 2 and 1 are pragmatic steps to take. We accept that the Labour party is implementing a manifesto promise, but the Lords have made reasonable recommendations on how things could be done better, and how we can put the passenger at the heart of the Bill. The amendments look at where passengers already get good services, and stage changes in a way that will not be disruptive to passengers who already get a good service on the railway network.

• 19 Nov 2024 · Passenger Railway Services (Public Ownership) Bill · Hansard source

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  The hon. Member has mentioned removing franchises based on performance and passenger satisfaction, but c2c—which operates with a 94% passenger approval rating—will be one of the first franchises to be removed. I actually think that Lords amendment 2 is quite sensible, in that it looks at how we prioritise. Some franchise operators operate very well-recommended and well-approved services.

• 14 Nov 2024 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  Following the Post Office’s announcement of its transformation programme, Poulton-le-Fylde’s central post office is threatened with closure. A petition that we started just last night has already received 1,600 signatures in less than 24 hours, which shows the strength of feeling in the community and its support for that vital service. May I echo the call from the hon. Member for Vauxhall and Camberwell Green (Florence Eshalomi) for a proper debate on both the importance of post offices and the transformation programme itself, so that Members can raise their concerns about the impact on their local communities in a constructive and cross-party manner, as I will happily do with the hon. Member for Vauxhall and Camberwell Green?

• 12 Nov 2024 · House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Bill · Hansard source

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  The point about trust in politics is valid, and the hon. Member’s statistics showing a deterioration in that trust over the last couple of decades are probably something for all of us in this Chamber to reflect on, notably the politicians who are newest to the House. I am not sure how hereditary peers, who have been serving for decades, since the time when trust in politics was far higher, are to blame for the modern lack of trust. That is more for those in this House to consider, especially newer Members, rather than people who have given lifelong and diligent service in the other place.

• 6 Nov 2024 · Budget Resolutions · Hansard source

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  Does my hon. Friend agree that, in the reaction to the Budget, the gilt market is in a far worse position than it was following the mini-Budget? Labour Members might want to do some research into the impact of their own Budget.

• 6 Nov 2024 · Budget Resolutions · Hansard source

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  rose—

• 6 Nov 2024 · Small Boat Crossings · Hansard source

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  I recently listened to an interview with a retired former inspector of borders and immigration, who was responding to the Government’s announcements. He outlined his concerns about the impact of the measures on their own, without an effective deterrent, and about how the Government will measure their success—the percentage or volume by which they want to see small boat crossings reduced after the announcements. What percentage reduction in small boat crossings would the Government view as success?

• 8 Oct 2024 · Zero Carbon Electricity System · Hansard source

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  In my constituency, two major offshore wind farms are currently being developed: Morgan and Morecambe. I recently met nearly 100 farmers who will be directly affected by the cabling corridor and the substation plans for the cabling route to connect to Penwortham. I am working with the hon. Member for Blackpool North and Fleetwood (Lorraine Beavers) on a potentially better route through her constituency, which would mean a major economic development revitalising an industrial area that has been looking for a major energy project for some time. We are jointly writing to the Secretary of State, and may I ask if he would commit to working with us on at least assessing that potentially alternative route for the cabling corridor?

• 8 Oct 2024 · VAT: Independent Schools · Hansard source

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  From listening to contributions made by Members from across the House, it is clear that these measures represent ideology over reality. The policy is economically illiterate, new consequences and implications are being discovered by the minute, and it will make worse every problem that Government Members say they perceive in the state system. They keep saying that they need to find more money to fill the black holes that they have magically found, yet the headlines show that they keep finding billions for pet projects every week. I was recently asked to go to a public meeting with over 100 concerned parents in my constituency. I listened to their stories and heard about their circumstances. From that evening alone, before we even got to this debate, it was clear that this policy was an ill-conceived disaster waiting to happen. Some 1,800 children in Fylde attend independent schools, hundreds of whom receive provision for SEND. Schools, including AKS Lytham and Kirkham Grammar, as well as smaller, specialist independent schools, are major employers and have been at the heart of local communities for generations. The parents of the children at those schools are often not rich. They scrimp and scrape, take on extra jobs, miss holidays and do not buy new cars because they have made personal decisions about their children’s education. Every parent should have that right and should not face a tax on the education of their children. The idea that such parents are all just rich and can take the hit, or that the schools spend 20% of their income on embossed stationery and swimming pools, is simply nonsense. This policy is fighting the class wars of the past with the future of the children of today. Lancashire county council has already said it cannot get close to meeting the forecast increase in places that will be needed, even before we get to the most acute SEND provision. This tax on education will not just hit independent schools, some of which are already facing closure; it will hurt the state sector more—I say this as someone who was proudly educated at a state school. The policy is clearly the politics of envy done badly—so much for the supposed “grown-ups” being back in charge.

• 5 Sept 2024 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  Let me first thank the Leader of the House for the correspondence following my question about the cable corridor in my constituency, which is causing great concern to residents. I appreciated the quick response. Will the Leader of the House ask the Cabinet Office to send a Minister to the House to make a statement on whether Sir Laurie Magnus is still the Prime Minister’s special adviser on ministerial interests, and, if not, whether a new appointment timeline can be arranged, and to confirm that the Prime Minister will abide by any rulings on the part of that special adviser?

• 2 Sept 2024 · Ukraine · Hansard source

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  BAE Systems in my constituency and its workforce across Lancashire—indeed, including in the Speaker’s constituency of Chorley —have been at the forefront of the armaments supply to Ukraine. The Typhoon project at the Warton site will start to hit a lull from next year, when there will be no more assembly of Typhoons, but we know that countries directly affected by Russia’s aggression across its border wish to place Typhoon orders in the coming years. There will be a delay in our ability to critically supply those important aircraft to strategic partners. Will the Minister commit to working with me and other MPs from Lancashire and with BAE Systems on how we can fill that gap in the production and assembly of Typhoon fighter jets, to make sure that, when our allies and partners need those jets, they will be available? This will also benefit jobs across Lancashire and indeed the UK economy through exports.

• 23 Jul 2024 · Immigration and Home Affairs · Hansard source

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  It is truly an honour to rise as the new Member for Fylde to give my maiden speech in this historic House, the global seat of democracy for centuries before us. I have chosen to make my maiden speech today because, having served as Lancashire’s police and crime commissioner until May this year, it felt incredibly poignant to speak in the home affairs debate. It gives me the opportunity to thank the police officers and staff I worked with for their bravery, their sacrifice and their service. During my term of office, I was truly inspired by so many people at Lancashire Constabulary. I threw myself into a job I loved, spending as much time on the frontline as I could. I learned the most about policing when there were no cameras around, sat in the back of carriers on the way to drug raids, walking the beat on a cold, wet evening, or taking part in training side by side with officers. They seemed to make the most of the commissioner being there with them, not sparing me the newbie treatment just because of who I was. I have been set on fire twice, had drainpipes Stihl-sawn off my arms and, despite doing all the videos people would expect from a politician, the most-watched video from my whole term of office was the one in which I got bitten by three different police dogs. With hindsight, given that the public appeared to enjoy the video of me getting bitten by dogs more than the ones about my budget, I suppose I should have seen my election defeat coming in that particular election. In all sincerity, though, I place firmly and proudly on the record my gratitude to everyone I have worked with at Lancashire Constabulary and in the office of commissioner. As this House debates the future policy and funding of policing in the UK, we should never forget those at the heart of it, on the frontline, working and making sacrifices to keep us safe every day. I am able to give this maiden speech today only because the people of Fylde have given me the honour of serving as their Member of Parliament, and it truly is an honour. Being elected to represent an area where my family connections go back before I was even born, that we as a family love, and where my two-year-old son Walter will grow up and call home, is an incredibly special and humbling moment. Fylde is a proud and beautiful area, steeped in the history of Lancashire and our country, nestled on stunning coastline with many towns and villages across the countryside, each with their own history. Might I add that it is also an area that we intend to fight to keep green and beautiful for generations to come? Fylde is far more than coastline, countryside and being part of our county’s history. Some of the most advanced technology in the world is being developed and built here. In fact, often when out near Warton and Freckleton we can hear the jet fighters taking off from the site where they are constructed. While I was out on the election battlefield, campaigning every day, it felt strangely reassuring to hear the incredible noise as the fighter jets powered overhead—to be honest, I needed all the back-up I could get in the battle to keep Fylde blue this time. From the defence sector to farming and agriculture, tourism and hospitality, the care sector and others, there is a strong local economy. However, to build on that, to create more opportunities for young people and to better connect our businesses and those seeking opportunities across Lancashire and beyond, we need to improve infrastructure and public transport. I am grateful to the work that my predecessor as the Member for Fylde did to secure millions in extra funding. Working with the Government, local councils and other partners, he was critical in securing the £27 million that enabled the M55 to Heyhouses link road to be constructed, and it has recently been opened. A few months earlier, the £150 million Windy Harbour to Skippool bypass opened, an important link road for the people across Poulton-le-Fylde. The boundary review brought this historic market town of Poulton in Wyre to the constituency of Fylde. I therefore also place on the record my thanks to the former Member for Wyre and Preston North, and former Defence Secretary, the right hon. Ben Wallace, and not only for the role he played in securing the funding for that major project, but for his unwavering work as Secretary of State for Defence in such critical, unpredictable and dangerous times. The global leadership he demonstrated in galvanising the international response to Putin’s illegal invasion of Ukraine is a legacy that he should be incredibly proud of. Going back to Fylde, we need to focus on continuing to improve the existing road network, as well as expanding it. Equally as importantly, we need to secure investment for the rail network, and I will be campaigning hard for a passing loop on the south Fylde line to improve the regularity and reliability of services. I would also like to talk about an important personal area of work that I will undertake as a Member of this House. I would not be here today—I would not have survived the journey to this moment—without the support, encouragement and love of my wife, Caroline. We have been each other’s strength through good times and difficult ones, and the fact that Caroline has always had the strength to support me in such magnitude when she has had her own battles to fight is testament to the person she is. Caroline, like thousands across this country, lives with what is often known as an invisible disability. It means that she has often concealed just how sick and in pain she is. She has had to explain why she is in hospital when just weeks earlier she may have been visibly well to everyone, and therefore suffering in silence. I want to champion the work of Crohn’s & Colitis UK, and other charities and organisations that support and advocate for those with disabilities that are not visible, and to help remove the stigma, indifference and even hostility that they receive, for example when needing to use facilities marked as for disabled people. The hurt and humiliation that can cause only adds to the incredible difficulty of living with these conditions, and we must do much more to raise awareness. To conclude, Fylde is a place where some of the most advanced fighter jets in the world are built, and it is at the cutting edge of artificial intelligence and other technology, but it is also a place where towns from Lytham to Kirkham, and villages from Staining to Singleton, still crown the young rose queens each year and hold galas and parades, and a place where people take pride in looking after the countryside and preserving our heritage. I intend to spend my time in this House fighting for Fylde—yes, for the investment in our future, but also the preservation of our history, our coastline and our countryside.

• 19 Jul 2024 · Covid-19 Inquiry · Hansard source

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  May I thank the right hon. Gentleman for the constructive way in which this has been approached, looking both at the things that went well and at the things we need to learn? Having external scrutiny from the covid inquiry provides that lens. As the Government look at the recommendations and begin to put plans in place, some of that will build on the work that was already being done and some, as he said, will be on things that need to improve. I suggest that external scrutiny of the Government’s response is equally important. Will he ask Lord Norton’s Statutory Inquiries Committee to monitor the Government’s response to the covid inquiry?

• 18 Jul 2024 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  As one proud Lancastrian MP to another, congratulations on your unanimous re-election to the Chair, Mr Speaker. Planning on the green belt is a huge concern in my constituency of Fylde—housing is part of it, but there are also the Morgan and Morecambe wind farm proposals. Most residents back the new renewable energy being built off the Fylde coast, but there are concerns about the cabling and substation route, which appears to take the route of least resistance. It will see miles of farmland and countryside dug up, and substations built in inappropriate locations. We seem to be unable to get answers from the company on why that has been chosen as the preferred route, when other far more appropriate routes for cabling and substations exist. Will the Leader of the House assure me that the Government will work with us to get answers from the company and clarity about the other routes that could be used for the cabling, and to ensure that it works with me, local campaigners and the council to get the most appropriate route?