Jim Dickson MP: speeches 2024

Speeches

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

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  Earlier this month, a BBC investigation uncovered a range of issues with the Dart charge, the toll paid to use the Dartford crossing, consistent with the significant problems I have been raising with National Highways, including accounts falling unexpectedly dormant, fines for cars not using the crossing and cases being referred to enforcement agencies. Will the Leader of the House advise me whether she can find time for a debate in the House on the administration of the Dart charge?

• 14 Nov 2024 · National Insurance Contributions: Healthcare · Hansard source

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  Last month’s Budget finally gave my constituents hope that there will be an NHS that works for them. Will my hon. Friend assure me that this Government will avoid the sticking-plaster, piecemeal approach of the last Government, and bring forward a long-term plan to fix the NHS for the future?

• 12 Nov 2024 · Transport Infrastructure Projects: Elizabeth Line · Hansard source

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  It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Mr Vickers, and I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Reading Central (Matt Rodda) on securing this important debate. We may be at different ends of the Elizabeth line, but we have a shared interest in getting the most out of it for our constituents. My Dartford constituency is one of the fastest-growing communities in the country, with the population of the local authority increasing by 20% between 2011 and 2021, and likely by significantly more in the three years since 2021. Ebbsfleet in particular has grown by over 5,000 homes, with another 10,000 planned over the next decade. Yet the Elizabeth line stops at Abbey Wood, rather than reaching Ebbsfleet as was originally envisaged in the 2003 and 2004 consultations on Crossrail, as it was then known. When my hon. Friend settles down at Christmas for his Elizabeth line quiz, perhaps he could add a question: where was the intended final south-east station in the original Crossrail plans? The answer is, of course, Ebbsfleet. A quick look at the map shows the discrepancy, with services north of the river reaching all the way out to Shenfield but south of the river only as far as Abbey Wood. I warmly welcome the fact that new residents are being attracted to live in Dartford thanks to the amazing development that is taking place, with many young families looking for comparably more affordable homes and often commuting into London. Despite not being a London constituency, we are dependent on transport links into the capital, which are crucial to economic growth in Dartford and across the Thames estuary, which could be an engine of growth for the new Labour Government. Five years ago, in 2019, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government provided funding for the C2E Partnership—an informal group of interested local authorities—to undertake a comprehensive study into options for improving transport connectivity between Abbey Wood, Ebbsfleet and Gravesend, to support new housing and employment along that growth corridor. In 2021, those options were refined to just three: first, an extension of the Elizabeth line to Northfleet, Ebbsfleet and Gravesend, sharing existing tracks with National Rail services; secondly, extending the Elizabeth line to Dartford with the construction of new tracks; or thirdly, improving the frequency of National Rail services, and a new rapid bus transit service from Abbey Wood to Ebbsfleet. Given the challenges with traffic that my constituency already experiences, I am somewhat sceptical about the third option, and there are significant challenges to sharing track with the existing National Rail services, making the first option difficult. Unfortunately, since that narrowing of options in late 2021 when the business case was submitted to the last Conservative Government, we have seen little progress. The idea was revived earlier this year by Local London, a collection of nine local authorities in north-east and south-east London, which included it in research it commissioned on the region’s long-term transportation needs. The London borough of Bexley and my hon. Friend the Member for Bexleyheath and Crayford (Daniel Francis) are keen to see the work progress, as he so ably and articulately set out. I urge the Minister and his colleagues across Government to look at how we can get on and finish the Elizabeth line as originally intended to grow the economy, boost productivity and improve lives across our region. That means extending it to Ebbsfleet, where the links with high-speed and international services would create an ideal interchange. That must be a priority when considering the future of the Elizabeth line.

• 11 Nov 2024 · Rail Performance · Hansard source

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  At a recent meeting with me to discuss rail improvements for my constituents, the chief executive of Southeastern—a nationalised company, as has been confirmed—was able to confirm that additional services between Dartford and central London are due to commence in December, as the Secretary of State mentioned. Can she outline any additional welcome improvements to services in the south-east, or other parts of the country, to which we can look forward?

• 31 Oct 2024 · Income tax (charge) · Hansard source

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  It is a privilege to rise as Dartford’s first Labour MP for 14 years to welcome the first Labour Budget for 15 years. But before I do so, I pay tribute to those who have made their maiden speeches this afternoon; they have been inspiring and personal, and Members have talked about their journeys and lovingly about their constituencies. I thank Members for those, and congratulations on them. Dartmouth, like much of the country, is at a crossroads after more than a decade of Conservative failure, with our economy stagnating and our public services broken and unable to be the safety net that my constituents need. Labour Members were elected on a promise of change, and yesterday’s Budget delivers that with a hugely welcome focus on investment to get our economy moving, setting the foundations for growth and beginning to fix our schools, our hospitals and our broken roads. It is astonishing to hear Conservative Member after Conservative Member say how they wish to see public services improved in their constituency, without willing any means to pay for it. The hon. Member for Romford (Andrew Rosindell), for example, seems to want European levels of public service on American levels of taxation. That is not possible, but this Government are achieving European-level public services supported by European-level taxation, borne by those with the broadest shoulders. The Chancellor is absolutely right that we must grow our economy. Nowhere is this truer than in the Thames estuary, which has the potential to be one of the UK’s engines of growth, with 1.3 million new jobs, 1 million new homes and £190 billion-worth of additional value added by 2050. In this Parliament, I hope to work with MPs on both sides of the House and from across the estuary region, as well as with Ministers, to make real progress. Work is already under way on establishing an all-party parliamentary group on the Thames estuary, which will work with Ministers on the fair growth agenda set out by the Government-sponsored Thames Estuary growth board. For the small number of people who have followed my short parliamentary career to date, it will come as no surprise to learn that I believe that a key shovel-ready piece of infrastructure, the lower Thames crossing, will be crucial to our investment in the estuary. Currently, we have only one road crossing of the Thames east of London, at Dartford—a single point of failure that can not only block crucial freight movement across the country but make the lives of Dartford residents a misery due to the gridlock. This project could start very quickly, with the planning process already undertaken and a delivery team already in place. In short order, it would create jobs across the local area and help us to unlock the largest bottleneck in the UK. I look forward to working with the Chancellor and her colleagues across Government to secure the necessary finance to get this project started. Dartford is lucky to have a district general hospital at Darent Valley, where the staff work with dedication every day to support our local population. However, after 14 years of Conservative government, waiting lists are far too high and the accident and emergency unit lacks the capacity to see people quickly. The latest figures indicate that more than 26,000 residents are awaiting treatment, with more than a third waiting longer than 18 weeks. The Chancellor’s announcement of £25 billion over two years for the NHS, to cut waiting times through extra elective appointments and additional capacity, should help to bring down these waiting lists. The recent Darzi report on the NHS highlighted the need to be far more creative in how we keep people healthy over the long term by building prevention into the system. I hope that Ministers will recognise the opportunities for people to get involved in community activities that help them to lead more active, healthy lives, as emphasised in this Budget. There is more work to do on tackling health inequalities, as these opportunities are not evenly spread across the country. On the subject of prevention, I particularly welcome the proposal to review the sugar tax, and to consider its extension to milk-based drinks. I would like to see this consideration extended to other products, including foods that are high in salt, fat and sugar. An obese nation cannot be a healthy nation. I finish by touching on an area of personal importance to me. Six years ago, my mother was diagnosed with dementia after her memory began to fail. I am proud that, thanks to the NHS, she has received high-quality care and continues to lead a high quality of life. As a former local government cabinet member for health, working across NHS and council boundaries, I know that is very often not the case. We can make life better for those who, like my mother, are diagnosed with dementia by ensuring early and accurate diagnosis, so the condition can be better managed, with the right treatments, and those who have been diagnosed and their families can prepare for the care they need. I hope Ministers will use the extra investment to look at how we can make that happen within the NHS. Dartford residents will welcome two other sets of critical measures in the Chancellor’s speech. Like colleagues from across the House, I know from my many conversations with parents of children with special educational needs how inadequate and broken the provision is, across the UK and in Kent. On top of the significant increases for schools and further education, the new £1 billion announced yesterday will add resources to the review of SEND announced by the Secretary of State for Education. I also welcome the steps the Chancellor has taken to tackle crime and to make people feel safer on our streets. Across the country, our sense of security has been eroded, with levels of antisocial behaviour and shoplifting that are far too high. This Budget will put us on the road to delivering our manifesto pledge to boost visible neighbourhood policing, with 13,000 more neighbourhood officers and police community support officers. As other hon. Members have said, for too long we have tolerated high levels of shoplifting in our town centres. Thanks to the effective immunity for low-value shoplifting introduced by the previous Government, retailers and staff live in fear of the individuals and organised gangs that target them. The additional funding to tackle that and provide more training to our police officers and retailers will help stop shoplifting in its tracks. It is clear that the problems we have inherited from the previous Government are substantial, but the Budget has laid the foundations for us to begin to tackle them. Steps to boost public investment, cut NHS waiting lists and fix our schools will be warmly welcomed by Dartford residents, and show that the new Labour Government are on the path to delivering the change our country voted for.

• 30 Oct 2024 · Engagements · Hansard source

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  Q7. After 14 years of failure by the last Government to renew and grow the UK’s infrastructure, does the Prime Minister agree that additional investment is needed to kick-start economic growth, and that— [ Interruption. ] This is the important bit. Does the Prime Minister agree that investing in a new lower Thames crossing to relieve Dartford residents from the gridlock caused by overcapacity at the Dartford crossing, thereby boosting the north Kent and UK economies by £40 billion, would be an excellent starting project?

• 29 Oct 2024 · Lower Thames Crossing · Hansard source

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  I beg to move, That this House has considered the potential merits of a new Lower Thames Crossing. It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Mr Efford. I start by thanking the colleagues from neighbouring constituencies in Kent, Essex and the wider Thames estuary who are present in the Chamber. I also thank representatives of businesses across our region for joining us in the Public Gallery; there is an impressive number of people from Kent and Essex here to show their support, from the private sector, Government-sponsored boards and a variety of other organisations. They have come together in support of the lower Thames crossing, and the economic and skills potential that it would create for Kent, Essex and the UK economy. I understand that the planning decision on the crossing is, as the Secretary of State for Transport has made clear to me, a quasi-judicial one, and that the Minister may not be at liberty to comment further than the written ministerial statement issued on 7 October. However, I am not here to talk about the planning process; we are here to talk about the merits of the lower Thames crossing proposal, the delivery of which not only is vital to my constituents, but will add £40 billion to our economy and be vital to the delivery of our Government’s core missions. Before I come to the merits, it is worth reflecting on the impact of having only one crossing—a single point of failure—over the Thames east of London, effectively creating the largest bottleneck in the UK. It is nearly a given that every Dartford resident’s life will be disrupted in one way or another because of traffic gridlock caused by tailbacks from the Dartford crossing. The crossing operates continually over capacity, struggling daily with 50,000 vehicles on top of the capacity for which it was designed, so disruption is an everyday issue. When the crossing goes wrong, as it did earlier last week, it goes disastrously wrong. Last Monday, a major technical fault at the tunnel left Dartford at a complete standstill for nearly 30 hours while repairs were made to one of the two tunnels. Trips that should have taken 10 minutes took four or five hours. That has a real impact on the lives of my constituents. It impacts residents trying to get to work, stifling local trades and businesses. Brian, a constituent I have been in contact with following Monday’s chaos, is a self-employed plumber from Swanscombe; the traffic meant that he could not get to his customers and lost out on a full day of work. Children across my constituency are regularly late to school or lose out on extracurricular activity by being stuck in traffic. Rajiv, another constituent, wrote to me about his 12-year-old daughter, who arrived back in Greenhithe at 8 pm last Monday tired, hungry and confused, having left her school in Northfleet four hours earlier. For those unaware of the geography, that is a journey of 4 miles. A school bus service for children with special educational needs and disabilities was cancelled, which meant that those young people lost out on a full day of learning. The disruption also impacts the health and wellbeing of residents. People miss out on GP and hospital appointments, and live in worry that, as it has before, traffic could cause a delay in getting to A&E should an accident happen. Another constituent of mine, a lorry driver with a pre-existing heart condition, made the decision to take a lower-paid job driving vans on one side of the river, as he was worried that if he got stuck in traffic and needed an ambulance it would not get to him on time. With stories like those, it is no wonder the lower Thames crossing has such strong support in my community, with over 70% of those consulted backing the new route. It has huge support from business, with 73 organisations nationwide, including the Port of Dover, the British Chambers of Commerce and some of the UK’s biggest retailers, saying that the crossing must go ahead. There is clear support for the crossing. The need for it is clear to residents and businesses, and it has been for a long time.

• 29 Oct 2024 · Lower Thames Crossing · Hansard source

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  I thank my hon. Friend for that intervention, and for her efforts to bring skills and opportunities together with the investment that we hope to see from the lower Thames crossing. She is absolutely right that there are numerous opportunities, including a dedicated T-level, apprenticeship and graduate set of schemes. Through the lower Thames crossing team, we are also developing the first green workforce in the estuary and helping the estuary in north Kent to become a high-skills economy, in contrast to the situation at the moment, where some parts do not have those skills and opportunities. Speaking of a green-skilled workforce, the lower Thames crossing will play a vital role in Britain becoming a clean energy superpower. It is leading the way in cutting carbon out of infrastructure, with its contractors already committed to reducing carbon by 50% with measures such as low-carbon concrete and steel, and eliminating diesel from the construction fleet. The crossing will replace up to 20 million litres of diesel with clean hydrogen power and ensure that its heavy machinery is powered in that way. The scale of hydrogen purchases will kick-start development of a hydrogen ecosystem in the Thames estuary, which the Thames Estuary Growth Board says has the potential to attract £2.2 billion of investment, create 9,000 new highly skilled jobs and 5,300 jobs in downstream automotive manufacturing, and boost the economy by an extra £3.8 billion. These clean energy initiatives will help transform our construction industry into a world leader in delivering low-carbon infrastructure.

• 29 Oct 2024 · Lower Thames Crossing · Hansard source

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  The hon. Gentleman seems to be saying that the lower Thames crossing project, which would take 20% of traffic out of the Dartford crossing and retain 14% of that reduction after 15 years—to get the figures right—should be bigger and wider. That is certainly a point of view. I am happy with the proposals as they stand. I would rather not make the crossing bigger and wider and therefore potentially create additional disruption and environmental impact. All those things are under control with this project, and I would not like us to go back to the drawing board and start the process again; that could take another 15 years. This is a long-term project. The last Labour Government identified the need for a lower Thames crossing 15 years ago and the project has been in conception since, but, broadly speaking, it has been sat on for the last 14 years. The route has been subject to lengthy consultation—three separate consultations, to be precise. After years of engagement, legitimate concerns have been worked through, and the crossing is the best solution to the lack of road capacity across the Thames, which costs our economy £200 million a year in lost time alone. As a Government of growth, we now just need to get on with the job and get the crossing delivered. Why? Because it would add £40 billion to the economy—it is precisely the kind of long-term project that the Chancellor of the Exchequer is talking about—and there are arguments for how it will contribute to all five of the Government’s missions for change. I will briefly list them. The crossing will be critical in kick-starting economic growth in the south-east of the UK. Once built, it will double capacity over the Thames east of London, creating another direct connection between channel ports, the midlands and the north. That will mean another road route for goods to flow to and from Europe, whereas right now, unlike nearly every other European nation, we have only one. The project will also reduce the number of vehicles using the Dartford crossing, as I said in response to the hon. Member for South Basildon and East Thurrock (James McMurdock), by around 20%, with 13.5 million fewer vehicles using the crossing each year, vastly improving journey times and reliability. It will also improve resilience across the major road network, providing new junctions with the A2, the M25 and other roads. There is also an opportunity to kick-start further progress in the Government-backed Thames estuary growth area, creating 1.3 million new jobs and £190 billion-worth of growth by 2050.

• 29 Oct 2024 · Lower Thames Crossing · Hansard source

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  We cannot address a bottleneck such as the one at Dartford, where the air quality is terrible, simply by allowing the situation to continue. We need additional capacity to spread that vehicle movement across more than one part of the Thames. That is what this proposal is about. There are many plans within the lower Thames crossing project to mitigate any environmental impact, such as by more than replacing the trees that are lost. The hydrogen economy means that it will be a low-carbon project. The new habitats that are created as a result of the replanting will be bridged, and will therefore be able to spread across the north and south banks of the estuary; that will ensure that they are preserved. The lower Thames crossing will also create safer and stronger communities by increasing skills and job prospects, and it will contribute directly to the Government’s mission to reduce the cycle of crime and prioritise rehabilitation. Just last week, the lower Thames crossing, north Kent’s own Gallagher Group and Flannery Plant Hire launched a new skills hub—an initiative designed to tackle our construction skills shortage by engaging new people through pilot courses. The first pilot has started. The 20 individuals involved include six prisoners who, upon their release, will have a guaranteed interview in the construction industry. The aim is to expand that skills hub throughout the build. Think how much of a difference this project can make to a local community when it is actually engaged in the construction.

• 29 Oct 2024 · Lower Thames Crossing · Hansard source

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  I thank my hon. Friend for that interesting intervention. All the calculations indicate that on the day the lower Thames crossing opens, there will be a 20% reduction in vehicles using the Dartford crossing, and that after 15 years that reduction will still be at around 14%. The crossing should also help to cut some traffic on the A13 in her constituency and from junction 30 of the M25, so there are advantages for her constituents as well as a clear advantage for mine and for the UK economy.

• 29 Oct 2024 · Lower Thames Crossing · Hansard source

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  I thank the hon. Member for her intervention. She is completely right. The project has the potential to really kick-start the growth in the Thames estuary that has started but needs extra investment in order to succeed. In addition to the points she makes, we should think about the Thames freeport in that context; it could generate £2.5 billion additional growth and attract £4.5 billion in public and private investment.

• 29 Oct 2024 · Lower Thames Crossing · Hansard source

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  At the moment, the project is attempting to receive a development consent order from the Government; that will be adjudged in May. The project is a result of three separate consultations and something like 350,000 pages of a planning application, so it really is not for me to suggest changes, but it is important that local people not only feel the benefit in goods and vehicles flowing north and south more freely, but in skills and investment in their local communities. Finally, on the Government’s five missions, the lower Thames crossing will create a healthier and happier local population. In the long term, the growth generated will support our vital public services such as the NHS. Its impact in reducing congestion drastically will be felt by my Dartford constituents, who will not experience the everyday disruption to their lives that they do right now—

• 29 Oct 2024 · Lower Thames Crossing · Hansard source

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  I would like to make progress, because the Minister needs to speak. The project will tackle the air pollution, the missed hospital and GP appointments and the strain on wellbeing that being in constant gridlock brings. The case for the lower Thames crossing is compelling, and the merits are huge. It will relieve the congestion in Dartford, which has affected the local community and held back local trades and businesses—it simply cannot continue. The project has overwhelming support from the business community, as can be seen today. I am happy to confirm that, alongside the businesses represented in the Public Gallery today, I have formed a business consortium, which is working closely with the local community to do everything we can to get spades in the ground. Tomorrow the Chancellor of the Exchequer will present her first Budget to the House, with growth and infrastructure at the fore as key themes—as, rightly, will be the financial challenges our Government face and the importance of leveraging private capital where we can. The Chancellor said last week that we need to: “invest in things to get a long-term return for our country and for taxpayers” when it comes to infrastructure. The previous Government spent 14 years talking about this project, for which there remains huge and increasing support. As a party of growth, Labour now needs to deliver. I and the consortium of businesses stand ready to work with the Government to get this vital piece of national infrastructure built as soon as possible.

• 29 Oct 2024 · Lower Thames Crossing · Hansard source

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  I thank my hon. Friend for pointing that out. The skills element is absolutely critical. The skills hub will be in Maidstone, but will be available to everyone across the region. The further education sector has come together as a consortium to make sure that 16-plus residents across the region benefit. I have spoken to at least one major construction business today that has been looking to start a skills hub in my hon. Friend’s constituency and would be very happy to do so upon the announcement of the start of this programme. There are lots of opportunities, both in Maidstone and in her constituency, for new jobs and new skills opportunities for residents. That is an extremely important point. The crossing has already been through the planning process and a delivery team is ready. That means that the project is shovel-ready and could be under construction shortly after decisions on planning and funding are made. We could be reaping the benefits very soon after a May 2025 decision.

• 28 Oct 2024 · Leasehold Reform · Hansard source

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  In Dartford, residents in new build estates in Ebbsfleet and elsewhere all too frequently experience opaque and unaccountable charging practices on the part of management companies, who seem far more motivated by making a profit than by providing services. What comfort can the Minister offer my constituents that these management companies will be brought within a fair and accountable legal framework in the near future?

• 28 Oct 2024 · Leasehold Reform · Hansard source

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  22. What steps she plans to take to reform the leasehold system.

• 17 Oct 2024 · Gambling: Harmful Effects · Hansard source

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  Many of us in this House have encountered harrowing stories from constituents of the devastating impact of gambling suicide. The Gambling Commission estimates that 2.5% of the population meet the threshold to be categorised as suffering from problem gambling and in need of NHS treatment. My constituency is considered a high-problem gambling area, which means that we have a high number of people who meet the threshold. Are steps being taken to progress towards an independent statutory levy on the industry to fund the gambling treatment and independent information that so many people urgently need?

• 17 Oct 2024 · Gambling: Harmful Effects · Hansard source

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  9. What steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to tackle the harmful effects of gambling.

• 17 Oct 2024 · Criminal Justice System: Capacity · Hansard source

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  I thank the Lord Chancellor very much for her statement. It is very clear, from everything we have seen over the past 14 years and since 4 July, that the previous Government completely failed to manage our prison estate. Does she agree with me and my constituents that it is really important that we maintain space in our prison system to lock up the most dangerous offenders? At the same time, we need to have a look at community sentences. Will she be doing that?

• 17 Oct 2024 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  Darent Valley hospital in my constituency needs significant expansion. Quarter 1 figures indicate that more than 32,000 people are waiting for treatment, and the hospital cannot cope with the new homes being built in the area. Will my right hon. Friend schedule a debate about the need to expand hospital provision in Dartford and across the country?

• 15 Oct 2024 · Post-sepsis Syndrome · Hansard source

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  Given that last month was Sepsis Awareness Month, will the Minister join me in paying tribute to the courage of John Snow and his family in my Dartford constituency? Tragically, he has just experienced a quadruple amputation due to sepsis. He has received amazing support from the Dartford community, who have rallied around to help fund support for his family. Will the Minister use that as a spur to improve treatment for sepsis more generally across the country?

• 10 Oct 2024 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  You are too kind, Madam Deputy Speaker. Residents in the town of Swanscombe in my constituency are having their lives blighted and made a misery by the diversion of large vehicles through their narrow streets due to the collapse of the A226 Galley Hill Road 17 months ago. A combination of Kent county council, Thames Water and the Department for Transport is needed to fix this. Might a debate be scheduled to debate this important issue?

• 10 Oct 2024 · Sport: Team GB and ParalympicsGB · Hansard source

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  I pay tribute to my hon. Friend the Member for Bournemouth East (Tom Hayes) for that moving speech, and indeed to all Members who have made such amazing maiden speeches this afternoon. I particularly associate myself with the tribute paid by my hon. Friend the Member for East Kilbride and Strathaven (Joani Reid) to Tessa Jowell, who was also an inspiration to me. I know that she would want, like others, to offer congratulations to the GB Olympic and Paralympic teams, and also to the Three Lions squad—and not only on their successful performance at this year’s Paris games and in Germany, but on the inspiration that they provide for people throughout our country and beyond to explore their own potential for sporting achievement, physical activity and wellbeing, enabling them to unlock in themselves the life-changing satisfaction of competing, staying healthy, and being part of a wider grassroots sporting community. Let me also offer my congratulations to Liam McGarry from Dartford on his fine achievement in taking fifth place in the 107 kg powerlifting at the Paralympics, and on showing us the greatest example of someone who strives to be the best he can in his discipline. I want to praise the national lottery for its continued investment in our Olympic and Paralympic athletes. It is truly the case—the evidence is clear—that this funding has transformed UK performance in the Olympics and Paralympics, and other international competitions, since the days of underachievement pre-2000. It is critical for this Government, working in partnership with sporting bodies, to build on that success and help to transform the UK into the most physically active nation in Europe. This has been called for by the newly re-formed all-party parliamentary group for sport, brilliantly supported by the Sport and Recreation Alliance—here I pay tribute to my hon. Friend the Member for Spen Valley (Kim Leadbeater) for her amazing chairship of the APPG over many years—and it is important for us to get behind that call. We should not be starting from a point at which school sport, for 90% of our population, has been decimated over the past 14 years, and nearly a third of children and young people are now inactive. We should not be starting from a point at which children and young people from the least affluent families remain the least active and are falling further behind, or a point at which more than a third of adults are not meeting the chief medical officer’s minimum requirement for physical activity, with obesity and cardiovascular disease the inevitable result. There are so many reasons why becoming a more active nation is vital for our country’s future. We can reduce the burden on the NHS by cutting spending on preventable disease by £1 billion per year. More important, we can take up the challenge laid out by the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care by shifting the focus from treating disease to preventing it; moving from being an increasingly unwell population to being a healthier, happier and more prosperous one as a result. In that we must categorically include mental health and the huge wellbeing benefits to individuals from being fit and active, calculated at £71 billion per year but, in reality, priceless to the individuals concerned. Having served in local government for many years leading public health programmes to tackle health inequalities, I can vouch for the power of sport and physical activity to reach those who public services sometimes find it hard to support, and to promote attainment, inclusion and, above all, good health. To make those transformative steps forward a reality, we need, among other things, to protect public and national lottery funding for grassroots community sport, recreation and physical activity so that the sector can continue to focus efforts on driving up participation, supporting its volunteers and reducing inequalities. We need to incentivise growth in participation by simplifying and enhancing tax arrangements for sports clubs, gyms, pools and leisure centres. We need a new long-term, joined-up plan to give every child 60 minutes of sport and play a day, and we need to boost our workforce with locally led skills development that aligns with education provision, employee needs, local health and wellbeing, and economic priorities. Let us build on the amazing legacy of our elite sports teams and the huge commitment of our grassroots sports infrastructure, such as Dartford football club, Dartford Valley community rugby club, Dartford cricket club and our great basketball clubs, the Sharks and the Tigers, as well as Dartford’s Central park parkrun, which has just celebrated its 10th anniversary. Let us give our huge commitment to these grassroots sporting organisations to transform the UK into the fit, active and healthy country that we can and need to become.

• 10 Oct 2024 · Capital Investment · Hansard source

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  As a result of under-investment in the lower Thames crossing project, Dartford residents face a noxious cocktail of bad air quality and disruption, living as they do near the hugely over capacity Dartford crossing. Will my right hon. Friend consider making representations to the Treasury to ensure that the lower Thames crossing, which is a vital infrastructure project, is funded?