Lucy Powell MP: speeches

Speeches

• 24 Apr 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  I will absolutely join her in wishing Jason Stockwood, whom I know well, all the very best in standing to be the first Mayor of Greater Lincolnshire. He will make a fantastic Mayor for Lincolnshire, and I hope people will vote for him next week.

• 24 Apr 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  Leasehold and unscrupulous managing agents are a huge issue for many of our constituents. We are committed to ending the feudal leasehold system for good. We have the commonhold White Paper. The Minister has announced how he will bring into effect measures from the previous Government and we will have a leasehold reform Bill later in the Session. My hon. Friend’s constituents will get the recourse and the services they deserve.

• 24 Apr 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  That horrific terrorist attack in Kashmir was utterly devastating and, as my hon. Friend says, a cowardly act. My thoughts and those of the whole Government are with the affected, especially those who have lost loved ones.

• 24 Apr 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  I thank my hon. Friend for facilitating that workshop. She is absolutely right; we want to co-produce the national youth strategy, and conversations and workshops like the one she has described—which are part of what I think is the biggest conversation ever with young people—are critical to ensuring that we design the services and support that young people want.

• 24 Apr 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  I will absolutely ensure that the hon. Lady gets a full ministerial reply about why that has happened, and when those repairs will be done, so that HGVs can get back on to the bridge as soon as possible for her constituents.

• 24 Apr 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  Poorly planned and delivered roadworks are of great frustration to my hon. Friend’s constituents, and to the constituents of Members from across the House. I join her in urging her local council to ensure that the roadworks do not cause the level of disruption that she describes, and this Government are committed to ensuring that.

• 24 Apr 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  I am sorry to hear about the fire in Cirencester. I agree with the hon. Gentleman that we need to get the balance right by ensuring that such facilities are safe and are safely operated while at the same time ensuring that we have the infrastructure that we need, and not just today but in future, for battery storage and other clean energy supplies. We are taking steps to ensure that local communities are consulted on these matters and that they benefit from these facilities when they come to their local area, but we make no apology for saying that we have to sprint towards that clean energy superpower that we need to be.

• 24 Apr 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend may be last, but certainly not least. I certainly join him in congratulating Harlow Town football club—maybe they have a Haaland as well, if they are bit like Man City—on its promotion and wish it the very best of luck in the league cup final in two weeks’ time.

• 24 Apr 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  I am really sorry to hear about the hon. Gentleman’s case. He may be aware that there is a special committee—it is not a Government committee—that looks at where there is a strong case for nominations to be removed. I urge him to contact that committee, and I will write to him with the details. He is absolutely right to say that we need to make sure that people are held accountable for their actions. Where they have received nominations, that is something that we should consider.

• 24 Apr 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  Absolutely. This Government have ended austerity in Scotland by giving the Scottish Government the biggest boost to their budget that they have ever had. They have the money; they have the powers. We really should not see services being cut like they are.

• 24 Apr 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  I join my hon. Friend in congratulating the engineers at JCB in his constituency on their brilliant work. I am pleased that this Government have been able to unlock road access for these diggers, which will unlock further job opportunities in his constituency.

• 24 Apr 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  I was sorry to hear of the hon. Member’s admission to hospital, and it is good to see him here in his place today as fit and well as ever. He is absolutely right, and people might not understand that hospitals hold individual records, and there is not a national database for data sharing across hospitals. Many people imagine it just happens, and it does not. I can assure him that the Health Secretary is committed to breaking down these barriers and making sure we have got the data sharing we need and the digital records that he describes so that people can get the appropriate treatment when they need it.

• 24 Apr 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend is absolutely right to highlight hygiene poverty, which is a real issue for many in this country. Tackling poverty in all its forms is a priority for this Government. I am sure that she would not expect me to make decisions on or talk about future levels of VAT, but this is a really excellent campaign that I think will get wide support from across the House, if she wants to take it further.

• 24 Apr 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  I absolutely join my hon. Friend in wishing all the young people in her constituency and across the House the very best of luck in all the exams they will be sitting over the coming weeks.

• 24 Apr 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  I am sorry to hear about that and the hon. Gentleman is absolutely right. The Scottish Government should be prioritising nursery provision and ensuring that people in rural constituencies such as his have access to that vital provision. He will know that, as the consequence of the Budget, the Scottish Government received a boon of over 20% more per person than the rest of the UK, so they have no excuses for the actions they are taking.

• 24 Apr 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  I know that HMOs are a big issue in my hon. Friend’s constituency, in mine and in many others. The Renters’ Rights Bill, which is now in the House of Lords, will take some action on regulating HMOs, but he is right that we could go further on these matters. I encourage him to continue to raise them, and I will make sure that he gets a ministerial reply.

• 24 Apr 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  I thank my hon. Friend for raising that, and he is absolutely right that access to driving licence tests and other things are not what we would expect them to be. The Secretary of State has taken steps this week to address some of these challenges, and we can go further. I will ensure that he is given a ministerial update on these important issues.

• 24 Apr 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  Access to cash in communities like the right hon. Gentleman’s is an issue that gets raised with me pretty much every week in this House. I will certainly make sure that a Minister comes back to him on those criteria and whether they are appropriate now that we are seeing more and more banks withdrawing from our high streets, and whether access to cash is really viable.

• 24 Apr 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  I will absolutely join my hon. Friend in highlighting MS Awareness Week, which is next week. I thank her constituent Simon and his employer for being so flexible. As she describes, living with these chronic conditions requires good employers that are flexible, as well as a range of other support services. Given that it is MS Awareness Week next week, I will make sure that the relevant Ministers report to the House on what we are doing.

• 24 Apr 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  I know that this is a matter of deep concern to many Members across the House, and I commend the hon. Lady for continuing to raise the issue, which also affects a number of my constituents. The Government have ensured that we have the £50 million arrangement for this year, but she will recognise that the increased demand on the adoption system, which is a good thing, means that we have had to make money from the fund go a bit further for many families. However, I hear what she says about the Government’s accountability. There was a written ministerial statement on the subject on Tuesday, but I will ensure that she and other hon. Members are able to question and speak to the Ministers, as appropriate.

• 24 Apr 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  I am often invited to support other football clubs, but my husband is an Aston Villa fan and, obviously, I am a Manchester City fan, so we have a lot of other stakes in the FA cup semi-finals this weekend. However, I am happy to join my hon. Friend in wishing Crystal Palace the very best of luck on Saturday.

• 24 Apr 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  I am sure the thoughts of the whole House will be with Catholics in this country and around the world as they grieve Pope Francis. As the shadow Leader of the House said, Pope Francis embodied the very best of us with his deep faith and commitment to the poorest, the weakest and those dealing with conflict and destitution. I once again put on the record my thanks to you, Madam Deputy Speaker, to Mr Speaker and to all the House staff for the professional and speedy way they recalled Parliament for us over the Easter recess. They have dedication and professionalism at their core. I take this opportunity, which I do not think has been done yet in the House, to pay tribute to Rory McIlroy on finally getting one of the greatest sporting achievements —the golf grand slam—and being the first European to do so. The resilience and mental strength he showed was unbelievable, and he was a role model of great sportsmanship. I also wish good luck to all those taking part in the London marathon this weekend. The shadow Leader of the House raises a number of points about the Government’s energy and climate change strategy, but he misunderstands the economics of the situation. The way we will get energy security and lower bills in the future and over the long term is by having our own energy security and our own clean energy supplies. We have to get ourselves off fossil fuels because to get that energy security, we have to become a price maker, not a price taker. Home-grown energy is the only way we will get control over our prices and get off the fossil fuel roller coaster. As a country, we have great assets: we are an island nation with an ability to generate offshore and onshore wind, tidal and nuclear energy. This Government have wasted no time. We have lifted the ban on onshore wind. We have established Great British Energy. We have approved nearly 3GW of solar, delivered a record-breaking renewables auction, kick-started carbon capture and got the nuclear planning reforms under way. That is how this country will bring down energy bills and get the energy security we need. We have to get ourselves off the fossil fuel rollercoaster. The shadow Leader of the House needs to look at the economics of the situation. I notice that the Chamber is very busy today—unlike many Members—as we look forward to the local elections. The shadow Leader of the House did not want to use this opportunity to make his party’s pitch for the forthcoming local elections, perhaps because the Conservatives are not quite sure what their pitch is. People have not forgotten the chaos and decline that his party left this country in after 14 years of failure and sleaze. The Labour party is putting money in people’s pockets with our boost to the living wage, with wages rising faster than prices; we are fixing the NHS, with waiting lists down for six months in a row and cut by 220,000 since July; our new free breakfast clubs will give kids the start to life that they need; we are taking back control of our trains and buses; and, as I saw at the weekend, we are taking swift action to tackle crime and antisocial behaviour by seizing and crushing off-road bikes, which I did myself. That is the difference that Labour makes in power. I am still not quite sure what the Conservative party’s strategy is at the elections. Perhaps the shadow Leader of the House would like to enlighten us. Is it what has been proposed by the shadow Justice Secretary, the right hon. Member for Newark (Robert Jenrick), in the form of an alliance with Reform? If that is not their strategy, why has he not been sacked? The Leader of the Opposition used her flagship election interview on the “Today” programme this week to tell us of her one big achievement: Tory party unity. I nearly spat out my tea! Tory Members can barely muster a cheer for her at Prime Minister’s questions, and the shadow Justice Secretary is in open leadership campaign mode. In fact, this week I have seen a letter that the shadow Justice Secretary sent to all Conservative local election candidates with his clear leadership pitch and the offer of “lunch with Robert”. By the way, it was all on House of Commons-headed paper, Madam Deputy Speaker, which is highly questionable. It is blatant manoeuvring, and a strong leader would have sacked him by now. Is it not the truth that, at the elections next week, a vote for the Conservatives is a vote for Reform, and a vote for Reform is a vote for the Conservatives?

• 24 Apr 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  I thank my hon. Friend for once again raising this important matter with me. He is a strong advocate for Kidsgrove and his constituents. I am really sorry to hear about the frustrations with the town deal. He is absolutely right that things were over-promised and under-delivered, and that is why the people of his constituency rejected the Conservative party at the last election.

• 24 Apr 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  I certainly join my hon. Friend in congratulating William on highlighting the issues of road safety in Bacup and across Rossendale and Darwen. He is absolutely right: road safety matters attract a great deal of interest in this House. We will soon deliver an updated strategic framework for road safety. I will ensure that that is brought to this House, and I will consider his request for a debate.

• 24 Apr 2025 · Business of the House · Hansard source

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  I am sorry to hear of the dither and delay in getting the school in Holt that the hon. Gentleman’s constituents have long been promised. As he knows, the provision of places is a matter for local authorities. They have been given the funding to provide places where they are needed, so the local authority really has no excuse but to get on and provide the school.