Claire Hazelgrove MP: speeches 2024

Speeches

• 5 Dec 2024 · Plan for Change: Milestones for Mission-led Government · Hansard source

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  The NHS has long been a top issue raised by local residents when I have been out knocking on doors across the whole of Filton and Bradley Stoke, so I welcome not only the investment, but the reform alongside that, and these clear milestones for change, which are what the country voted to see. Will the Minister give a commitment, on behalf of the Government, that no matter the lack of support from the Conservative party, he will persevere with this, as that is what the country wants?

• 20 Nov 2024 · Government and Democracy Education · Hansard source

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  I declare a deep interest: I am a member of the all-party parliamentary group on political and media literacy, and I believe these issues are very important. Does my hon. Friend agree that this is not just about the education of young people in and of itself, but about how people go on to engage in our democracy later in life, and that that is about not just voting but engaging with confidence and clarity with elected representatives? For example, as a new Member of Parliament, I have reflected on the fact that a number of residents say to me, “I’m not sure who to go to—is it you, a councillor or somebody else?” Would enhancing political and democratic education not serve to enhance our entire political system, ensuring that people get the support they need, from the person they need it from, when they need it—and that they do so with confidence?

• 6 Nov 2024 · Budget Resolutions · Hansard source

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  When I was out knocking on doors and listening to fellow residents at the weekend, many people in Winterbourne said how pleased they were to see us begin the change that has been so desperately needed by so many for so long. From our NHS and our schools to our industry and our roads, this Labour Budget is focused on fixing the foundations, delivering change that matters, and rebuilding Britain. After 14 years of decline and neglect, simple things have become much harder than they should be, and although people know that it will take time to deliver the scale of change that Britain needs, we now have funding for 40,000 more NHS appointments a week, and money to rebuild schools that are crumbling around our children and to start to improve SEND support, so that every child can thrive, and to make life fairer for carers who look after loved ones. This is a Labour Government delivering as promised. The Filton and Bradley Stoke constituency is a rich tapestry of towns and villages that have strong local character and great national and international impact. I am proud that our communities are at the heart of aerospace in the UK. We are the home of both Concorde and the future of flight, and major companies, supported by brilliant SMEs, are innovating every day to reduce emissions and lead the way in British enterprise. I know that local people will join me in welcoming our Government’s investment of £975 million in the aerospace sector in the Budget. That will fund vital research and development for the latest aerospace technology in our region and beyond. That is important because rebuilding Britain is also about restoring Britain’s leadership and place on the world stage. We have a strong defence sector locally, including MOD Abbey Wood, so I welcome the £2.9 billion uplift in defence funding, in addition to the funding for Ukraine for as long as it is needed. Our support must never waver. As the first ever woman to represent my constituency, I note what an important moment it was to see the first woman Chancellor in our country’s history stand to deliver the Budget. Representation matters, as does delivering change. This Budget does what our new Labour Government were elected to do: it sets the path for rebuilding Britain. I look forward to supporting those efforts on behalf of my community, who elected me to deliver that change.

• 5 Nov 2024 · Renters' Rights Bill (Eighth sitting) · Hansard source

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  I beg to ask leave to withdraw the new clause. Clause, by leave, withdrawn . New Clause 10 Home Adaptations “(1) The Housing Act 1988 is amended as follows. (2) After section 16 insert— ‘ 16A Home adaptations (1) It is an implied term of every assured tenancy to which this section applies that a landlord shall give permission for adaptations where a local council has carried out a Home Assessment and recommends adaptations which constitute reasonable adjustments under the Equality Act 2010. Tenants have the right to appeal a landlord’s refusal to adapt a property. (2) This section applies to every assured tenancy other than a tenancy of social housing, within the meaning of Part 2 of the Housing and Regeneration Act 2008.’” — (Carla Denyer.) This new clause would ensure that landlords give permission for home adaptations where a Home Assessment has been carried out. Brought up, and read the First time.

• 5 Nov 2024 · Renters' Rights Bill (Eighth sitting) · Hansard source

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  I rise to speak in support of new clause 8, tabled by my hon. Friend the Member for Dulwich and West Norwood (Helen Hayes), who is not a Committee member. The new clause would provide protection for bereaved guarantors by prohibiting the application of a guarantor agreement in the event of the death of a tenant. My hon. Friend was motivated to table the new clause following the tragic case of her constituents who lost their son to suicide. The young man was a first-year university student who had signed a private tenancy for his second-year accommodation. Very sadly, he died by suicide months before the new tenancy was due to start. His parents had signed a guarantor agreement that applied in the event of the tenant’s death, and while they were grieving the loss of their son, the letting agent pursued them for the rent on the property in which he would never live. That type of clause is not common to all guarantor agreements, and it is entirely unnecessary, because the loss of rental income due to the death of a tenant is an insurable risk for landlords. New clause 8 would prevent guarantor agreements from applying in the event of the death of a tenant. It has been tightly drafted with the assistance of lawyers from Shelter. My hon. Friend is extremely grateful to the Minister for his positive engagement on the issue, both prior to the general election and subsequently. Although I do not seek to press the new clause to a vote, I hope the Minister will be able to give assurances either that the Government will accept the new clause or introduce an amendment to the Bill to the same effect. I hope we can all agree that no one who is grieving the loss of a person for whom they have acted as a guarantor should be pursued for that person’s rent. That small change in the law would prevent the distress that was caused to my hon. Friend’s constituents from happening to anyone else.

• 5 Nov 2024 · Renters' Rights Bill (Eighth sitting) · Hansard source

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  I beg to move, That the clause be read a Second time.

• 4 Nov 2024 · Curriculum and Assessment Review · Hansard source

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  11. What recent progress the independent curriculum and assessment review has made.

• 4 Nov 2024 · Curriculum and Assessment Review · Hansard source

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  Research from the University of Cambridge shows that financial habits are often set by the age of seven, yet financial education for young people is still a postcode lottery. It is not part of the primary curriculum, and many teachers at secondary level, where it is part of the curriculum, lack resources and confidence in teaching it. Can the Secretary of State confirm whether such foundational life skills, which all young people need in order to thrive, will be considered at all key stages in the curriculum and assessment review?

• 22 Oct 2024 · Renters' Rights Bill (First sitting) · Hansard source

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  Q Thank you both for joining us today. It is so important to hear renters’ voices here in Parliament as we discuss this crucial Bill. A simple question from me: do you believe that, as drafted, the Bill will improve the lives of, and make things fairer for, the millions of renters across our country? Tom Darling: Simply put, yes. We will be pushing in a number of places where we think the Bill should go further and where we do not think the Government have quite got the balance right, but the groups in our coalition have been campaigning for this change since the promise was first made nearly six years ago. We think it will be an important change to our housing system. Ben Twomey: Yes. Our homes are the foundations of our lives. The Bill will give us some much-needed security and should drive up standards and quality. As I say, we are worried about affordability within that, but the main reason why you as politicians have probably not heard from renters so much as is in the past year or two is that things have got so desperate. We are worried that if there are some improvements to renting, suddenly we will lose our ability to have spaces like this where we can begin to make change. If this is to be a once-in-a-generation opportunity to make that change, we think you should cover all bases and make sure that no one finds themselves homeless, in poverty or in debt because of the fact that they have been forced into private renting.

• 22 Oct 2024 · Renters' Rights Bill (First sitting) · Hansard source

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  Q Thank you for joining us today. I am looking at your impressive background: you have clearly done a lot of great work on homelessness and in other areas, whether at City Hall addressing rough sleeping, or on the social impact bond on homelessness. With that lens in mind, do you feel that the Bill will deliver on the Government’s aims to give renters greater security and stability and to reduce the risk of homelessness? Is there anything you want to add along those lines? Richard Blakeway: First, thank you for recognising that previous work. There are specific things in the Bill that increase the protections for renters and the security of tenure for renters. Those are welcome and important and would prevent the risk of homelessness for some individuals. It also changes the relationship between the resident and the landlord, and addresses an imbalance of power that exists at the moment. In changing the relationship, the importance of redress is fundamental, to ensure that there is not a breakdown in that relationship and that a tenant does not end up living in conditions that are not acceptable. We must also recognise that the role of a redress provider is also to share the experience and the learning that we have through our casework to ensure that landlords can effectively fulfil their obligations and raise standards. This Bill is not only about increasing security for individuals; it is about a wider shift and change in the role of the private rented sector in this country—a sector that is completely different from the one that was envisaged and started to emerge decades ago. It is different in scale, different in the types of properties, and different in the range of providers. So the real impact of this Bill over time will be a real shift in the landscape of the private rented sector and a raising of standards. It is important that landlords are part of that journey and can affect that in their own actions, and that an ombudsman service is there to help individuals exercise their rights, but also to provide the insight and intelligence to landlords to ensure that they prevent problems that need to go to an ombudsman from occurring.

• 22 Oct 2024 · Renters' Rights Bill (First sitting) · Hansard source

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  I used to work at Shelter, which is giving evidence today.

• 22 Oct 2024 · Renters' Rights Bill (Second sitting) · Hansard source

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  Q Dr Dawson, I was thrilled to see that you are an external examiner for the University of the West of England, particularly focusing on environmental health. That university sits in my constituency, so thank you for the work you do to support students in our community. You both have a wealth of experience and expertise; thank you for what you have shared already. I want to follow on from the last question and open the floor a bit more to see whether you had any additional thoughts about the Bill’s strengths or any areas where you feel it could be further strengthened—points that our questions so far have not let you speak to. Dr Henry Dawson: Councillor Hug, would you like to go first? Cllr Adam Hug: I think we have identified the key thing for us. Dr Dawson explained some of the challenges around funding stability, and we think that on many different levels it would be extremely helpful if the Bill made it easier to apply selective licensing schemes. Making it easier to use that existing tool would help to provide stability, but ultimately we are just very keen for this legislation to be passed through Parliament so that tenants get the extra protection and councils have certainty about what will be expected of them. We want to ensure that we are properly funded to help us to deliver this important task, but we are keen to get it right.

• 22 Oct 2024 · Renters' Rights Bill (Second sitting) · Hansard source

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  Q Is my hon. Friend certain that the Bill, as drafted, provides enough protections against huge advance rent requests? Matthew Pennycook: It is a very good question, and we have touched on this issue, as well as guarantors. I am happy to give the Committee a sense of my thinking, because I have reflected further on the matter in the light of concerns that have been put to us by not only external stakeholders but several hon. Members in the Second Reading debate on 9 October. As I made clear in that debate, the Government have long recognised that demands for extortionate rent in advance place a considerable financial strain on tenants and can exclude certain groups from renting altogether. We are very clear that the practice of landlords demanding large amounts of rent in advance must be prohibited. Although it might be argued that the interaction of the new rent periods in clause 1, which are a month or 28 days, and the existing provisions of the Tenant Fees Act 2019, relating to prohibited payments, provide a measure of protection against requests for large amounts of advance rent, I am increasingly of the view, speaking candidly, that there is a strong case for putting this matter beyond doubt. I am giving careful consideration as to how best that might be achieved in the course of the Bill’s passage.

• 15 Oct 2024 · House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Bill · Hansard source

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  Given my hon. Friend’s expertise in polling, for the benefit of this House, could he shed any light on whether there is any public support for continuing the hereditary principle?

• 15 Oct 2024 · House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Bill · Hansard source

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  Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker. It is the privilege of my life to give my first speech in the House of Commons as the first Labour Member of Parliament for the Filton and Bradley Stoke constituency. Having been a candidate since 2022, it still feels rather surreal to be on this side of the election and to say those words, and in truth I hope that standing here in this awe-inspiring place will always feel at least a little surreal. I could not be more grateful to fellow residents for the time that thousands of them have given in speaking with me and my volunteer team on their doorsteps over the years already, and for putting their faith in me to serve them well. But no matter how people voted, I will work hard every day to serve all residents as an active, impactful and approachable MP that they can be proud of. I come from a family of teachers, NHS workers and RAF service members, and their sense of public service runs deep in me. I have spent my life working with and for those who too often do not have enough of a voice on issues that matter to them—on global poverty, on opportunity, on the environment and on the housing crisis. I am at my core a campaigner and advocate. I whole- heartedly believe in the power of community, and that lived experience is as valid in shaping policy and public services as holding multiple degrees in that same subject. I see this role, which I am honoured to hold for a time, as being a vital jigsaw piece, joining together with others to make life fairer for people across our community and our country. The NHS workers, the charity workers, the teachers, the carers, the innovators and the volunteers—I could go on—are the ones who bind us. That is certainly the case across our rich tapestry of towns and villages just north of the city of Bristol in glorious South Gloucestershire. I am determined to put the whole of the Filton and Bradley Stoke constituency—named after the oldest and youngest towns at the time of its creation, and including many distinct and vibrant communities—on the map. It is the home of Concorde and the future of flight, with our aerospace companies setting the standard nationally and internationally. It is the home of the lifesaving NHS Blood and Transplant, the innovative University of the West of England and the vital MOD Abbey Wood. It is also home to Wallace and Gromit, more places called Stoke than one could count after a few great local ciders, and a palpable belief that better days still lie ahead. People in my constituency do not ask for too much. We want security, stability and fairness, and to know that if we work hard, we have the same chance as anyone else to fulfil our potential. We want to know that we will be able to provide for our families through good wages earned from decent jobs, and to enjoy life and give back in our own way. I am incredibly grateful for the fact that even though they have been up against so much in recent years, people in my community chose to keep their faith in better. I will work hard every day to repay that trust. With that in mind, while it is almost impossible for any two people, let alone 75,000 of us across a constituency, to agree on everything all the time, I will always be up front with fellow residents, will listen, and will share what decisions I am making and why. I believe that how we do things in politics matters almost as much as what we do. I appreciate my part—my responsibility—in doing politics differently and having better conversations. On that note, I give thanks to my predecessors. Jack Lopresti championed defence, and I know that he will be glad of this Government’s continued support for Ukraine. Before recent boundary changes, some local residents were served by Luke Hall, and briefly by my hon. Friend the Member for Bristol North East (Damien Egan), when he was the last Member for Kingswood. My true thanks to them and their predecessors for their service. I also want to give my personal thanks to two other former Members of this House who have been important in my journey to this place. Sally Keeble was the nearest Labour MP to me when I was growing up in a village that still does not have a Labour MP. She took me under her wing and first encouraged me to think about standing to serve in this place. I also thank Tony Blair, whom I had the privilege of working closely with for a few years at his Institute for Global Change. His approach to considered and considerate leadership has taught me a great deal. It was the last Labour Government’s response to the Make Poverty History campaign that showed me that politics at its best can be an unparalleled force for good, and that significant change can happen when people power meets political power. That is when I first found the Labour party. I got into politics, like many, to make a difference, but I was driven every day by the simple belief that someone’s background should not determine their life chances and life choices. That is why it feels fitting to give this speech today, in a debate that is fundamentally about how we make our Parliament better and fairer. While I am a great supporter of British institutions and traditions, there is clearly no place in a modern Parliament for people—largely men—who can vote on legislation as a birthright, because their father did. As a new officer of the all-party parliamentary group on financial education for young people, and as a soon-to-be member of the upcoming group focusing on political and media literacy, I will work hard and across the divide to help others to feel as confident, capable and comfortable as anyone else in these spaces. I hope to show that if I can stand here today—a girl from a village who had, and still has, a simple belief in making life fairer—so can anyone. I am fully committed to serving local people well, putting our priorities at the heart of the agenda and breaking down barriers to opportunity, so that everybody has their chance to thrive. I end by thanking my family, friends, campaign team and community, who inspire me every day.

• 2 Sept 2024 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  As the housing crisis worsened under the last Government, houses in multiple occupation became more prevalent in a number of communities, including in Filton, Stoke Park and Stoke Gifford. Naturally, with more people living in more homes than were envisaged when the local infrastructure was planned, there is an impact on public services and the character of communities, and routes such as permitted development are regularly being used to start extensions and conversions. Will the Minister meet me, as the Government shape much-needed changes to the planning framework and regulations, to discuss how HMOs might be included in an appropriate way?

• 29 Jul 2024 · Public Spending: Inheritance · Hansard source

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  May I thank my right hon. Friend for her transparency and openness about the dire state of our inheritance from the Conservatives? The Tory leadership race is now clearly in full swing, which is important. People across the Filton and Bradley Stoke constituency, and across the country, deserve to know why none of the contenders came clean about this black hole when they were in government. Or were they kept in the dark by the Chancellor’s predecessor as well?

• 23 Jul 2024 · Access to NHS Dentists · Hansard source

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  I congratulate my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care and his fantastic team on taking their new place on the Government Front Bench. I also thank my right hon. Friend for his advocacy in the last Parliament for people across my constituency who lack dental access. What assurances can the Minister provide that the important issues of infrastructure and housing will be linked together? As we look to build those much-needed 1.5 million homes across the country, it is vital to make sure that we do not have more dental deserts and that we have the infrastructure we need. How will he work in a cross-departmental way to ensure we achieve that?