Brexit: Food Prices

Baroness Farrington of Ribbleton Excerpts

Tuesday 14th November 2017 Lords Chamber

[Lord Kirkhope of Harrogate (Con)]

My Lords—

[Baroness Farrington of Ribbleton (Lab)]

My Lords—

[Lord Taylor of Holbeach (Con)]

My Lords, it is Labour’s turn.

[Baroness Farrington of Ribbleton]

My Lords, will the Minister accept that his words stating that the Government are aware of the impact of rising food prices on the poorest people in the country have a hollow ring? To be aware of the problem and pursue policies that worsen the situation is a very evil act. Many of these families are suffering enormously because of the Government’s policies. Will the Minister take back the message that nobody wants to see this deprivation continue and that all benefits should be increased to account for the increase in the cost of food?

[Lord Gardiner of Kimble]

My Lords, I hope that the noble Baroness will accept that the Government have done a number of things, including introducing a new mandatory national living wage which has meant a £600 a year increase in earnings for a full-time worker on the previous national minimum wage. According to the ONS, the lowest-paid workers are seeing their pay go up most—by more than 6% last year. We obviously need a safety net and we have a safety net. As I say, the amounts the Government are spending on disability, incapacity, the unemployed and mental health are very considerable indeed. In fact, as a share of GDP the UK’s public spending on disability and incapacity is higher than that of any G7 country except Germany.

Rural Areas: Income

Baroness Farrington of Ribbleton Excerpts

Tuesday 7th March 2017 Lords Chamber

[Lord Gardiner of Kimble]

My Lords, as I say, the rural-proofing guidance is to go across Whitehall and the DCLG is of course a very important government department in that respect. There are clearly considerable sums of money still going to local authorities and it is for them to decide on the division of the budget. But this predicates something rather more important: we have to have a growing economy to afford all the things we want to do. That is why this country has the fastest-growing economy in the G7, which is important because it is only when we grow our economy that we will have the resources to do many of the things which I am sure your Lordships wish to have done.

[Baroness Farrington of Ribbleton (Lab)]

My Lords, would the Minister care to correct his assertion about the national living wage and the national minimum wage? Secondly, can he assure me that when the Government put in new free schools in areas where there is no need in terms of numbers, they will consider the needs of the rural economy? I declare my interest as a former chair of Lancashire education authority. Because of the history of Lancashire, we have the largest number of voluntary-aided schools. People have wanted diversity locally for Anglican and Catholic schools, in the main, across the county. Can be we assured that the Government will not come in from Whitehall with little knowledge and step over the needs of the local community? Some of those schools need money and investment.

[Lord Gardiner of Kimble]

My Lords, that is precisely why I suspect we are going to hear about more investment: we want to enhance the opportunity for children across the country. We have some schools that are simply not up to the standard that we want. That is why we will need to invest more and why I am a champion of rural schools—precisely because we want to ensure that there are opportunities in rural areas, as across the rest of the country. As for the living wage, I will check Hansard. The national living wage will certainly rise to £7.50 per hour in April but I will see whether I have made a mistake.

Thames Tideway Tunnel

Baroness Farrington of Ribbleton Excerpts

Wednesday 14th May 2014 Lords Chamber

[Lord De Mauley]

We have thought very carefully about that, my Lords, and we have concluded that it would be more expensive. However, as I said, green infrastructure and SUDS solutions are part of the long-term solution.

[Baroness Farrington of Ribbleton (Lab)]

My Lords, why did the Minister fail to answer the question put by my noble friend Lord Grantchester?

[Lord De Mauley]

My Lords, because there probably would not be time to do it justice. However, I assure noble Lords that the question of how we structure this project is complicated and we are being extremely careful about it.

Food Banks

Baroness Farrington of Ribbleton Excerpts

Thursday 20th March 2014 Lords Chamber

[Lord De Mauley]

My Lords, we are not proposing to record the number of food banks or the potential number of people using them or other types of food aid. To do so would place unnecessary burdens on the wonderful volunteers trying to help their communities. The report is a useful summary of evidence from providers and charities. The provision of food aid ranges from small, local provision through to regional and national schemes. The landscape is mostly community-led provision responding to local needs. It is not the Government’s role to tell them how to run the services they provide.

[Baroness Farrington of Ribbleton (Lab)]

My Lords, the Minister said that the answer to the problem of people using food banks is for them to be in employment. Without doing research, how on earth can the Minister justify that statement? So many people are working and using food banks—those on zero-hours contracts, et cetera. Is the Minister aware that, in many parts of the country, food banks cannot accept food that needs cooking because those using food banks have had their power cut off through poverty?

[Lord De Mauley]

My Lords, the noble Baroness raises a number of issues, and I am not going to have time to do them all justice. She raises the issue of the working poor, and she is right to do so. We agree, as I said earlier, that some of the poorest households in the country are struggling. That is why, for example, we are increasing the minimum wage and increasing the personal tax allowance, taking 3.2 million people out of income tax altogether. That is why we have frozen fuel duty and why we have helped local authorities freeze council tax.

Forestry

Baroness Farrington of Ribbleton Excerpts

Tuesday 5th February 2013 Lords Chamber

[Lord De Mauley]

My Lords, as part of the Red Tape Challenge, tree preservation order regulations have been included on the website. We are not saying that we want to get rid of the regulations or protection for trees. It is a chance for the public to tell us which regulations are working, which are not, which should be scrapped, which should be simplified and what can be done differently.

[Baroness Farrington of Ribbleton]

My Lords, will the Minister please answer in full the question asked by my noble friend Lady Royall?

[Lord De Mauley]

My Lords, I consider that I have done so.

Farming Regulation Task Force

Baroness Farrington of Ribbleton Excerpts

Wednesday 11th July 2012 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Farrington of Ribbleton]

My Lords, will the Minister ensure that his department takes great care when deregulating agriculture? Does he not recall, as many in this House do, that the changes to regulation in heating food for pigs were one of the factors that were identified as a great risk for foot and mouth disease? Will his department ensure that it never again deregulates at the expense of the consumer?

[Lord Taylor of Holbeach]

The noble Baroness is quite right to remind us of our responsibility in undertaking this project. I said in my opening response that we need to work with thoroughness to ensure that situations such as she describes do not happen again.