Polly Billington MP: speeches 2024

87 published records · newest first.

Speeches

5 Nov 2024 · Income Tax (Charge) · Hansard source
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I welcome the right hon. Gentleman to his place, but before throwing stones, will he just remind the House that under his Government’s plans, there would have been £15 billion less for the NHS, leaving it broken?
31 Oct 2024 · Business of the House · Hansard source
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My right hon. Friend will be aware of how much coastal communities such as mine depend on bus services, not least to get to vital healthcare, and I am grateful to the Chancellor for finding the money to retain a cap on bus fares. In east Kent, however, our orthopaedic centre is in Canterbury, yet there is now no direct bus service from Ramsgate or Broadstairs, making access harder for the very people with mobility issues who need such services. Will the Leader of the House find Government time to debate access to healthcare via sustainable, reliable, safe and affordable transport?
29 Oct 2024 · Israel: UNRWA Ban · Hansard source
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In response to my hon. Friend the Member for Brentford and Isleworth (Ruth Cadbury), my right hon. Friend suggested that it was difficult to explore the motivations behind the Knesset’s decision. But we have to be clear that UNRWA is being targeted because of its mandate with Palestinian refugees. The Knesset’s vote will likely be devastating for lifesaving aid operations. It is also a unilateral attempt to impact the right of return and make a two-state solution even harder. Does she agree that this is unacceptable?
29 Oct 2024 · Living Standards · Hansard source
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As my right hon. Friend will be aware, coastal communities such as mine struggle with a low-pay, low-skill economy. Does she acknowledge the importance of the minimum wage in tackling this problem and supporting our communities and local economies?
29 Oct 2024 · Living Standards · Hansard source
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24. What steps she plans to take to help improve living standards.
29 Oct 2024 · Great British Energy Bill · Hansard source
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I would like further clarification about this interesting proposition from the Liberal Democrats about community energy groups working with the big energy companies. What plans do the Liberal Democrats have for the concept of securing ownership at community level? My concern about the model being suggested is that, rather than there being a community energy ownership model, it would instead be one of big companies investing in small communities.
29 Oct 2024 · Great British Energy Bill · Hansard source
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Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker. I will speak specifically to the amendments on community energy, and I refer the House to my entry in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests. Back in 2016, I founded UK100, a network of local government leaders who are ambitious about shifting their communities and their economies to net zero. It is because of that experience, working with local leaders of all political persuasions across the country, that I would like to highlight the importance of a local-led approach to reaching our net zero targets. GB Energy will be able to play a crucial role in doing so by facilitating and encouraging local authorities to meet the ambitious net zero targets that have been set across the country. People will be familiar with the ambitions of big cities such as Leeds, Liverpool, Birmingham, Bristol and Brighton—to name but a few—but towns and villages in rural and coastal communities have also made those commitments. That is why community energy is so vital, and why it is so much a part of this Government’s overall project and of this Bill. Through the local power plan, GB Energy will be able to work with local and combined authorities to deliver hundreds of millions of pounds of funding to small and medium-scale clean energy projects, helping to turn those ambitious targets into reality. GB Energy will also be able to work with communities across the country to help deliver that local-led approach. I have seen some great real-world examples of community-led climate projects. For example, Green Meadows is a community climate action project in Nottingham, funded by the National Lottery’s climate action fund, that aims to deliver home insulation, clean energy generation for local homes, planting projects and workshops to give residents the tools and skills they need to install their own energy upgrades. With no disrespect to the National Lottery’s fund, we need a more strategic approach to the local delivery of clean, home-grown, secure energy. That is the role of the GB Energy company. By working with communities and local people, GB Energy will be able to play a crucial role in building consent and support for clean energy projects, in order to reach our ambitious targets and avoid a backlash to net zero—we have already seen that backlash, particularly driven by some of the attitudes of the Conservative party. We have to bring people along with us and show them how they can tangibly benefit from the transition. Net zero must not be something we do to people; it must be something we do with people. If we do not work with communities, we will face resistance across the country, but not because people are against tackling climate change. By involving people and showing them how they can tangibly benefit, we will face less resistance and deliver much quicker deployment of the energy projects we need to build. Swaffham Prior, which was mentioned by the hon. Member for South Cambridgeshire (Pippa Heylings), is indeed a valuable project, but we cannot leave the transition to projects of that scale. To support community projects at scale, we need a transformative approach that is about transforming the rules of the market as much as it is about establishing GB Energy. Lastly, de-risking those projects—both at scale and community assets—will be a vital role of GB Energy. Reaching net zero will be a partnership between the state, the private sector and the community. Government investment to help “crowd in” that private sector and community investment will be crucial. In that context, we often talk about new and developing technologies, but it is crucial not to forget existing, proven technologies.
29 Oct 2024 · Great British Energy Bill · Hansard source
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We should bear in mind that the regulations established by those other countries apply to all companies. It seems to me that we should be going in that direction, rather than simply saying that we will focus on one company, GB Energy. Given our high ethical standards, this is the kind of sectoral approach that we should be able to create ourselves, as an international leader.
29 Oct 2024 · Great British Energy Bill · Hansard source
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I thank the hon. Lady for giving way. I would like to clarify what she said about there not being anything in the Bill about community energy. It is in the founding statement of GB Energy, because we know the importance of locally delivered community energy in facilitating this transformation. I want to correct that for the record, because the suggestion that community energy is not one of the aims of this legislation is a misunderstanding.
29 Oct 2024 · Great British Energy Bill · Hansard source
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All the things that the hon. Gentleman mentioned are exactly what GB Energy will do. There is literally no reason why he cannot go through the Lobby with Labour Members this evening, because the Great British Energy Bill will do all the things he has asked for it to do. It is nothing to do with sucking up the energy of the civil servants doing policy; that is a completely different role, and they will continue their work.
28 Oct 2024 · Middle East · Hansard source
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I welcome the Foreign Secretary’s statement today, and I strongly support the Government’s efforts to achieve a ceasefire, secure the release of the remaining hostages, and restart the negotiations for a two-state solution. I also welcome the Government’s decision several weeks ago to suspend a number of arms export licences to Israel where there was a risk that they would be used to violate international law. Will my right hon. Friend confirm that the UK is working hard to persuade our allies, particularly the United States, to adopt our position on arms exports to Israel, to ensure that no weapons are being exported from any country where there is a risk that they could be used to commit war crimes in Gaza?
28 Oct 2024 · Agricultural Land: Protection · Hansard source
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Thank you very much for your permission to speak in this debate, Madam Deputy Speaker. I want to support the representations from my hon. Friend the Member for Aylesbury (Laura Kyrke-Smith), because some of the things that she raises are also relevant to my constituency and those across the country. As my hon. Friend said, the case for more genuinely affordable homes is clear. That is accepted in my community as much as in hers, if not more so, as so many people struggle in the private sector and house prices spiral due to the pressure of unregulated short-term holiday lets, driven by many people’s huge and understandable desire to enjoy the delights of Margate, Broadstairs and Ramsgate. We need new homes. I have spoken to far too many people in their 30s and beyond who live in their childhood bedrooms, sometimes with a partner. They are desperate to be able to start their lives in a home of their own, but they are priced out of their own community. We also desperately need the infrastructure to support the families who will live in those homes, and we need to protect and enhance not only the nature that we love but the nature that is essential to our own economy, wellbeing and future. I came here to change the rules, Madam Deputy Speaker, although of course I observe the ones that you enforce in this House. It is clear that the current rules do not serve our need for homes or our need to protect and enhance nature. They do not enable the right infrastructure to be built, nor do they effectively help us identify and protect our vital farmland. Those who protect the status quo in this argument are condemning our country to failure. Those who think that any of these four elements—homes, farming, nature or infrastructure, including energy—should drop off the list of our priorities do not understand the importance of shaping our communities to benefit our residents, now and for the long term. Nature is not just a “nice to have”. It is fundamental to us in achieving our economic, health and climate goals. In Thanet, people come to see and enjoy our natural world. Damaging nature, where it is a vital part of the economy, is short-sighted and dangerous. We also have some of the most productive farmland in the whole of the UK, yet the existing planning rules do not protect it from speculation and development. Access to nature is proven to enhance health and wellbeing, and the successes of previous Labour Governments in creating access to nature for everyone are some of our proudest achievements. Furthermore, responsible custodianship of our natural environment, especially precious ecosystems, is vital to capturing, sequestering and reducing carbon emissions. The sixth carbon budget predicts that, by 2050, we will need to remove 39 megatonnes of CO 2 a year via nature-based solutions, which is more than double what we do today. That includes wetlands, woodlands and peatlands, which are both beautiful and useful. This Labour Government were elected on a mandate to transform us into a clean energy superpower by 2030 and to restore and protect 30% of nature by 2030. We cannot achieve those goals under the current rules. That is why I look forward to us publishing a land use framework that will help us to decide what we use land for, and help us to shape our communities and our country to meet our ambition to be somewhere with affordable homes to rent or own and run, affordable sustainable food, affordable secure home-grown clean energy, decent public services, and our beloved countryside providing us with the peace and climate security we all need.
28 Oct 2024 · Agricultural Land: Protection · Hansard source
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rose—
24 Oct 2024 · Black History Month · Hansard source
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Does my hon. Friend agree with me on the importance of that changing narrative, and the importance of the organisations in our communities that change it? In mine we have People Dem Collective, Everyday Racism and Margate Black Pride, which are putting the stories of black people in our constituencies on the map. They tell me that in the modern curriculum review, we need to make sure that black history is not just about black people; it is everyone’s history, and it should be part of the curriculum.
23 Oct 2024 · Independent Water Commission · Hansard source
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I welcome the commission announced by my right hon. Friend. Last week, six beaches in my constituency were affected by raw sewage dumping, with two of them—Joss Bay and Stone Bay—experiencing a bad effect on their bathing water quality, but the verdict was that they were still within Environment Agency permitted limits. Will my right hon. Friend confirm that the commission will investigate regulatory standards, so that when raw sewage is dumped, there is actually a fine and a punishment for the water companies? I must also make a declaration as a customer of Southern Water and a sea water swimmer.
21 Oct 2024 · Employment Rights Bill · Hansard source
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My hon. Friend mentions that the measures in the Bill will be good for employees. Does he agree that they will also be good for business? My constituency’s economy is based on the entrepreneurialism of lots of small businesses and individuals creating work for themselves and for others. Does he agree that the Bill will support good employment policies in small businesses, helping with productivity and the retention of staff?
21 Oct 2024 · Employment Rights Bill · Hansard source
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Will the hon. Gentleman give way?
17 Oct 2024 · Business of the House · Hansard source
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Pie Factory Music in Ramsgate, in my constituency, serves more than 1,000 young people across east Kent, many of whom are in care or are young asylum seekers, refugees or struggling with ill health. Unfortunately, Conservative-run Kent county council has slashed support for Pie Factory Music and now wants to sell the building, preventing access to a safe, dedicated space for these young people. I am aware that our Labour Government are committed to a new network of youth hubs. In that light, will my right hon. Friend provide Government time for a debate on the importance of youth services, particularly in building resilience, tackling mental health issues and enabling young people to thrive?
15 Oct 2024 · Great British Energy Bill (Fifth sitting) · Hansard source
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The hon. Gentleman might have been reading my speeches from my career before I was elected, because I have been campaigning for a long time to improve the consent of and support for communities, so that they get some actual benefit from the investment that we will need to make in the renewable energy that we are talking about. That would require a change to the planning rules, which has not happened over the last 14 years, and a proper land use framework that involves energy. That is a bit of a diversion from the Bill, which is specifically about setting up a company to be able to generate electricity, but I am keen to hear the kind of rhetoric that we have heard from the hon. Gentleman in future when we talk about the transformation of the national grid and energy market reform, which would reduce bills for consumers.
15 Oct 2024 · Great British Energy Bill (Fifth sitting) · Hansard source
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It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Dr Huq. I am staggered that the hon. Gentleman is talking about the national grid as though the previous Government—his Government —had not been in power for the last 14 years and did nothing to transform the national grid to support the renewable energy that is essential for the country’s prosperity. All the failures in the national grid system, and all that backlog, are because of the failure to grip the problems with the national grid that happened on his Government’s watch.
15 Oct 2024 · Renewable Energy Projects: Community Benefits · Hansard source
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It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Dr Huq. I was not planning on speaking in this debate, but I am moved to by comments that have been made. I think it is worth while, even in the short amount of time that I have, to remind people that our economy and Britain’s success over decades and centuries has been because of our securing an industrial revolution based on fossil fuels. I welcome the opportunity that we have here to establish a political consensus not to repeat the mistakes of the past, where the poorest end up bearing the brunt of any transformation and the wealth is concentrated in the hands of a few. I share the sentiments of the hon. Member for Inverness, Skye and West Ross-shire (Mr MacDonald), who secured the debate, that we need to see an increase in community ownership of our renewables—for very good reasons. He says the major problem is access to funding, but I would say it is only a problem unless we change the rules. I would like us to establish a political consensus on the transformation of the energy market reform so that we can harness what is an endless amount of renewable energy in our communities across the country. His suggestion of a green tariff would need to be in the context of energy market reform because, as has been pointed out by others, there are significant standing charges on people’s energy bills that militate against the kind of transformation we need in our energy sector. When we have that community benefit, we also need to think very carefully about what powers we give and the governance structures around it, so that communities can choose how they spend the money. There is a clear argument for ensuring that energy revenue is spent on energy challenges in communities—which are often, as has been said, off grid and often some of the most fuel poor in our country. As a representative of three small towns on a very windy coast, I make the observation that there are poor people living in towns and cities, too, and we would not want to establish an energy market that did not recognise that. We should tackle those challenges as well. I want to make a point about the ways of dealing with or mitigating the impact on our communities. Inevitably—
15 Oct 2024 · House of Lords (Hereditary Peers) Bill · Hansard source
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Will the hon. Gentleman give way?
12 Sept 2024 · Topical Questions · Hansard source
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T7. Margate, Broadstairs and Ramsgate are bywords for the English seaside holiday, but Thanet district council has to deal with the appalling levels of littering and fly-tipping that come with the popularity of our beautiful beaches. At the end of a hot, sunny day, 5,000 people will have descended on Margate main sands, leaving them far from beautiful. The rubbish is an environmental and health hazard. Of course, the challenge is a seasonal one. What plans do the Government have to support coastal communities in tackling this blight?
12 Sept 2024 · Street Crime: Prosecutions · Hansard source
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What we have noticed, particularly in town centres such as Ramsgate and Margate, is that antisocial behaviour, drug dealing and street crime, particularly knife crime, continue because of people’s anxiety about giving evidence against the criminals. What will my hon. and learned Friend and the Government do to give people confidence that the criminal justice system and prosecutions will flow once they have given their evidence?
12 Sept 2024 · Street Crime: Prosecutions · Hansard source
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6. What steps she is taking to help ensure the effective prosecution of street crime.

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