Oral Answers to Questions

James Davies Excerpts

Wednesday 28th February 2024 Commons Chamber

[Simon Baynes (Clwyd South) (Con)]

5. What steps he is taking with Cabinet colleagues to safeguard Northern Ireland’s place in the Union.

[Dr James Davies (Vale of Clwyd) (Con)]

13. What steps he is taking with Cabinet colleagues to safeguard Northern Ireland’s place in the Union.

[The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (Chris Heaton-Harris)]

The Government are fully committed to protecting and upholding Northern Ireland’s place in the Union, a commitment we reaffirmed recently in the Command Paper “Safeguarding the Union”. That included proposals for new measures in domestic legislation to protect unfettered access to the UK internal market, and to affirm Northern Ireland’s constitutional position as set out in the Belfast/Good Friday agreement. This Government are convinced that that is the best way we can safeguard Northern Ireland’s place in the United Kingdom.

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[Dr James Davies]

The Union is strongest when people can see and feel its benefits to their daily life. Does my right hon. Friend agree that a prosperous Northern Ireland, with a stable, devolved Government, is the surest way to safeguard the Union’s integral place in the United Kingdom?

[Chris Heaton-Harris]

I thank my hon. Friend for his question, and I absolutely, 100% agree with his sentiment. It is a real pleasure to see the devolved institutions at Stormont up and running. You, Mr Speaker, have a new colleague there: the former Speaker was desperate to retire for two years—tributes were paid to Speaker Maskey at the time—but Speaker Poots is now in place. It has been wonderful, too, to see the new First Minister and Deputy First Minister working together to achieve good solutions, on public services and a whole host of other things, for the people of Northern Ireland. The Union is best served by devolved institutions working. I very much welcome everyone’s commitment to that cause.

Oral Answers to Questions

James Davies Excerpts

Wednesday 21st February 2024 Commons Chamber

[Trudy Harrison (Copeland) (Con)]

6. What steps her Department is taking to improve rural connectivity.

[Dr James Davies (Vale of Clwyd) (Con)]

8. What steps her Department is taking to improve rural connectivity.

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[Julia Lopez]

My hon. Friend’s constituency has very low gigabit connectivity, partly because its geography makes connections very expensive. That is why we launched one of our very first contracts in Cumbria. Some 15,000 premises are going to be connected across Copeland, and we are trying to stretch the contract as far as it will go. For premises that will not be reached, we will look at other technologies so that we can get to them as quickly as possible.

[Dr James Davies]

I work closely with Philip Burrows, Denbighshire’s excellent digital officer. He tells me that Openreach can still impose significant excess charges to connect properties that are declared enabled for fibre. In those instances, people are unable to claim via the gigabit voucher scheme. Will my hon. Friend outline what steps she is taking to address this matter?

[Julia Lopez]

I thank my hon. Friend for raising the experience of Mr Burrows, who sounds like a very experienced officer. I would like to hear a bit more detail, because it sounds like the properties he cites have access to a fibre connection and would not be eligible for a voucher. I would like to know a bit more about the excess charges so that we can deal with any problems.

Oral Answers to Questions

James Davies Excerpts

Wednesday 10th January 2024 Commons Chamber

[Julie Marson (Hertford and Stortford) (Con)]

1. What recent discussions she has had with Cabinet colleagues on trends in the level of private investment in research and development in the last 12 months.

[Dr James Davies (Vale of Clwyd) (Con)]

13. What recent discussions she has had with Cabinet colleagues on trends in the level of private investment in research and development in the last 12 months.

[The Minister for Science, Research and Innovation (Andrew Griffith)]

This Government have a fantastic track record of mobilising private investment in research and innovation, alongside delivering the largest ever public spending, which will reach £20 billion a year next financial year. In November, the global investment summit saw commitments to invest almost £30 billion in the UK, including the decision by Flagship Pioneering, one of the world’s leading life science investors, to have its first international base in the UK.

[Andrew Griffith]

Like its Member of Parliament, Hertford and Stortford is indeed innovative. The Mansion House reforms, which in my previous role I helped the Chancellor to deliver, will unlock an estimated £50 billion of investment to scale up high-growth companies across the whole United Kingdom, including in my hon. Friend’s constituency. That sits alongside our £250 million initiative for long-term investment for technology and science—LIFTS—which will focus particularly on British pensioners investing in long-term growth opportunities in tech and the life sciences. When it comes to British innovation, this Government are all in, and I hope that in 2024 financial institutions will be too.

[Dr Davies]

In October, the Government announced the £60 million regional innovation fund to boost university support for regional economic growth. Wales was allocated £3.4 million through the Barnett formula. However, disappointingly, there is no evidence of that money having been spent on its intended purpose in Wales. What assistance can the Minister provide to encourage the Welsh Government to invest Wales’s proportion of the regional innovation fund in boosting the Welsh economy?

[Andrew Griffith]

As my hon. Friend said, the recently announced regional innovation fund is providing £60 million of funding across the United Kingdom to harness the strength of our universities. It is intensely disappointing that the Labour Government in Wales have not seen fit to spend that in the same way. Ultimately, that is a decision for the Labour Government, and I am sure that the electorate will hold them to account for that.

Oral Answers to Questions

James Davies Excerpts

Wednesday 18th January 2023 Commons Chamber

[Sir Chris Bryant (Rhondda) (Lab)]

4. What recent discussions he has had with the Welsh Government on the proposed refocusing of investment zone policy.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Wales (Dr James Davies)]

Let me first congratulate the hon. Gentleman on his knighthood in the new year’s honours list.

We remain committed to working with the Welsh Government on the delivery of investment zones for Wales. That is alongside the freeports programme, which will facilitate growth and innovation through benefits such as tax relief for businesses.

[Sir Chris Bryant]

That is all very well, but the Government have basically completely binned their investment zone policy. I have had a letter from a Government Minister saying that it is all being refocused and is not about housing and planning any more but about productivity, improving growth and job creation. But no details are available, and all the bids have been binned. Is that not further evidence that we do not have a Government in this country anymore, just a bunch of rapscallions squatting in ministerial offices?

[Dr Davies]

I cannot agree with the hon. Gentleman. As he will know, many elements of the policy are devolved in Wales. Therefore, discussions continue with the Welsh Government on those aspects. I would highlight that there are 5,400 similar zones in other parts of the world. We must deliver growth for Britain in a similar fashion.

[Mr Speaker]

I call the Chair of the Welsh Affairs Committee.

[Stephen Crabb (Preseli Pembrokeshire) (Con)]

I echo the congratulations to the hon. Member for Rhondda (Sir Chris Bryant) on his knighthood. One of the lessons of industrial policy over the last 30 years in Wales, certainly given the number of failed food parks, science parks and technology parks, is that taxpayers’ money alone does not create economic activity out of thin air. Does the Minister agree that whatever interventions we or the Welsh Government make must work with the grain of the private sector? To that end, does he recognise that the overriding strength of the Celtic freeport bid is that it works with real projects and real industry to deliver floating offshore wind in the Celtic sea?

[Dr Davies]

My right hon. Friend is a strong campaigner for the offshore wind possibilities in south-west Wales. He will know that decisions on awarding freeports are ongoing, with at least one due in Wales and an announcement to be made shortly.

[Dame Nia Griffith (Llanelli) (Lab)]

5. What assessment he has made of the adequacy of UK Government funding for Wales.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Wales (Dr James Davies)]

Over the spending review period the UK Government are providing the Welsh Government with 20% more funding per person than equivalent UK Government spending in other parts of the UK. As a result of the autumn statement, Welsh Government funding is increasing by around £1.2 billion over the next two years, on top of the additional £2.5 billion-a-year average over the three-year spending review.

[Dame Nia Griffith]

The UK Government shared prosperity fund short-changes Wales by £1 billion over three years, even though the Secretary of State and his predecessors repeatedly promised that Wales would receive not a penny less when replacing EU funds. Those funds were used by the Welsh Government to deliver 5,000 apprenticeship year. Why is the Minister letting down young people in Wales in this way?

[Dr Davies]

The hon. Lady will know that the shared prosperity fund is extremely generous to Wales and replaces all the money that came from the European Union. There have been fantastic announcements in recent weeks about how the fund will progress. She will also know about an array of other funding schemes through UK Government, including the growth deal. I hope to be in her constituency in early February for the groundbreaking, milestone event for Pentre Awel, I hope she will join me at that.

[Sarah Atherton (Wrexham) (Con)]

Despite the Welsh Government receiving the largest devolution funding settlement, it has the worst performing Labour-run NHS. Instead of spending on what matters, they plan to spend £32 million on a 20 mile-an-hour blanket speed policy. Such a policy will cost the economy £4.5 billion. Does my hon. Friend agree with me and 94% of my surveyed constituents that that is another example of a Labour waste of money?

[Dr Davies]

My hon. Friend is quite right that the policy is not a good way to spend money, and is not deliverable either. As an NHS GP working in north-east Wales, I can tell her that the delivery of NHS services is shocking in many senses. We need the Welsh Government to improve their performance.

[Mr Speaker]

I call the shadow Minister.

[Gerald Jones (Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney) (Lab)]

As my hon. Friend the Member for Llanelli (Dame Nia Griffith) has just reminded the House, the Secretary of State, the Minister and their predecessors repeatedly promised that Wales would receive “not a penny less” to replace EU structural funds to Wales. Not only have they failed to deliver on that promise, but the record inflation that their Government have presided over has resulted in a double whammy to the Welsh Government’s budget. Is the Minister aware that higher education has been shut out of his Government’s flagship levelling-up process and that hundreds of jobs are now at risk, possibly as many as 600? Why are his Government continually letting down people, including young people, across Wales?

[Dr Davies]

I joined the Secretary of State on a visit to Bangor University last week and it is important that we ensure there are funding mechanisms for higher education. There is an array of schemes through the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, and it is important that the hon. Gentleman and the Government work on ensuring that the university sector is supported in Wales.

[Wendy Chamberlain (North East Fife) (LD)]

7. What recent discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on support for rail infrastructure in Wales.

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[Jerome Mayhew (Broadland) (Con)]

8. Whether he has had recent discussions with the Welsh Government on the closure of the Menai bridge.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Wales (Dr James Davies)]

Roads are a devolved matter and the decision to close the Menai suspension bridge was therefore made by the Welsh Government. Work has commenced on the emergency replacement of brittle hangers dating back to 1938, and this will be followed by additional maintenance works. Welsh Government Ministers assure me that, subject to safety assessments, the bridge is due to reopen at the end of this month.

[Jerome Mayhew]

The Menai bridge supplies the lifeline of tourism to Anglesey and the wider region. Given Welsh Labour’s negligent handling of the maintenance of the bridge, and now its closure for months, how does my hon. Friend think Welsh Labour is doing on its manifesto commitment to rebuild tourism in Wales?

[Dr Davies]

Quality road infrastructure is vital to unlocking the potential of the north Wales visitor economy. I believe that there are questions to be answered about the specification of the contracted private finance initiative maintenance schedule for the bridge, which was awarded by the last Labour UK Government in 1998, and about the stalled consideration of a third crossing on the Menai strait. I urge the Welsh Government to publish the findings of the roads review and resume the improvement of the north Wales road network.

Health and Social Care Update

James Davies Excerpts

Thursday 22nd September 2022 Commons Chamber

[Dr Coffey]

I am sad and concerned to hear about the case the hon. Gentleman has just mentioned—it is unacceptable. However, I have already set out to the House aspects of how to improve ambulance responses, and it is my intention that those will be delivered right across the country.

[Dr James Davies (Vale of Clwyd) (Con)]

I welcome this plan for patients, which recognises the importance of data in the NHS in England. My right hon. Friend will be aware of extreme concern over the state of the NHS in north Wales. Will she therefore affirm her commitment to UK-wide compatible and interoperable data in the NHS and the potential for the Data Protection and Digital Information Bill to bring that about?

[Dr Coffey]

I thank my hon. Friend, who is a practising GP and who is very committed to his constituents as their MP as well. He will recognise that the NHS in Wales is run by the Labour Government there. However, he is right to point out that it is important that we work across the United Kingdom by sharing information and putting patients first, and we will continue to work to try to make sure that happens.

Oral Answers to Questions

James Davies Excerpts

Wednesday 8th June 2022 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

I can tell the hon. Gentleman that the reports that he has seen this morning are not correct. I can also tell him that the most important commitment that I think everybody in this House has made is to the balance and symmetry of the Belfast/Good Friday agreement. That is our highest legal international priority, and that is what we must deliver.

[Dr James Davies (Vale of Clwyd) (Con)]

Q6. The north Wales mainline railway has had little investment for more than a century. In practice, that means that jobs at Manchester airport are poorly accessible to many of my constituents: they face a two-hour commute, whereas a similar journey in the south-east of the country takes just 45 minutes. Will my right hon. Friend ensure that the north Wales line features in the updated rail network enhancements pipeline at the decision-to-develop stage?

[The Prime Minister]

Listen, I am a great enthusiast for this project. We are looking at it, and I can tell my hon. Friend that Network Rail has received funding to carry out feasibility work on improving north Wales mainline journey times. Travellers in north Wales could have no more effective advocate than my hon. Friend.

Oral Answers to Questions

James Davies Excerpts

Tuesday 24th May 2022 Commons Chamber

[Sara Britcliffe (Hyndburn) (Con)]

12. What steps he is taking to reduce reoffending.

[Dr James Davies (Vale of Clwyd) (Con)]

16. What steps he is taking to reduce reoffending.

[The Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice (Dominic Raab)]

The reoffending rate for prisoners who leave prison has fallen by nine percentage points—from 51% to 42%—since 2010. The rate of prison leavers who secure a job within six months has risen by almost two thirds in the past year alone.

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[Dominic Raab]

My hon. Friend is absolutely right. I was up in Blackpool last week to announce a £300 million fund that local authorities can access to prevent youth offending. It is called the turnaround project and is targeted at around 20,000 children. The idea is to get them into sports, whether that is boxing or martial arts, or indeed into drama or other positive outlets. By doing that, we can then wraparound the pastoral care and work with the law enforcement agencies. That will not just give those children the opportunity to take a springboard into school, training and, ultimately, work, but keep our streets safer for communities.

[Dr Davies]

My right hon. Friend is right to focus on helping offenders to find work post release, which is crucial to reduce reoffending. Will he update the House on progress made in that respect?

[Dominic Raab]

In the last year alone, we have seen a step change in respect of offenders being in work within six months of release from prison; the number has increased by two thirds. The prisons White Paper sets out the strategy. We are rolling out the chairs of employment advisory boards and now have chairs for 48 out of 91 prisons. We have also stood up 29 of the employment hubs in our prisons. Those are the links between prison governors and local businesses that will get offenders into work and to stay on the straight and narrow.

Oral Answers to Questions

James Davies Excerpts

Wednesday 20th April 2022 Commons Chamber

[Rebecca Pow]

The hon. Lady raises a vital point of which we are fully aware, which is why 141 countries signed that commitment in Glasgow to halt and reverse forest loss and land degradation. The Government introduced a “due diligence” clause in the Environment Act, so we are making our businesses look at the sustainability of their forest products. We are leading by example, but we have a great deal more work to do around the globe to stop deforestation.

[Dr James Davies (Vale of Clwyd) (Con)]

T1. If he will make a statement on his departmental responsibilities.

[The COP26 President (Alok Sharma)]

The latest report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which was published this month, makes it clear that the window to limit the average global temperature rise to 1.5° is closing alarmingly fast. We need to make faster progress, so the UK continues to urge all Governments, but particularly those in the G20, to honour the promises that were made in the Glasgow climate pact. We are also working to get finance flowing to climate action. Last month, I co-chaired a meeting of G7 Ministers, multilateral development banks and the private sector on the expansion of just energy transition partnerships to support developing nations. Today, I will travel to the World Bank spring meetings to drive that work forward.

[Dr Davies]

What steps is my right hon. Friend taking to ensure that rising international gas prices do not push back up the use of coal?

[Alok Sharma]

At COP26, all countries agreed to phase down the use of coal domestically, and we will continue to urge them to deliver on that commitment. As a result of the current energy security and pricing issues, I do believe that we will see an acceleration of renewables and clean energy capacity globally.

Oral Answers to Questions

James Davies Excerpts

Wednesday 23rd March 2022 Commons Chamber

[David T. C. Davies]

My hon. Friend is correct. The UK Government wanted to celebrate the enormous achievement and the enormous commitment to public service that has been made by our monarch, and have produced the book bilingually to ensure that schoolchildren across Wales are able to read bilingually about the contribution made by Her Majesty the Queen. I am sure they all look forward eagerly to receiving their copy. The UK Government are working with the Welsh Government to ensure that that can happen imminently.

[Dr James Davies (Vale of Clwyd) (Con)]

6. What discussions he has had with the Welsh Government on the impact of their roads review on transport infrastructure.

[The Secretary of State for Wales (Simon Hart)]

The Wales Office has regular discussions with the Welsh Government on cross-border connectivity. I am afraid that Labour’s plans are more of a roadblock than a road review. I urge the Welsh Government to focus more on investment and on delivering their 2016 manifesto commitments to sort out the M4 relief road and various other vital links.

[Dr Davies]

Five years ago, the A55-A494 network resilience study, commissioned by the Welsh Government, recognised the strategic importance of the route and the fact that it is often above capacity and vulnerable to disruption. How does my right hon. Friend believe the roads review may impact on plans for UKNET, a high-performing strategic transport network for the whole of the United Kingdom?

[Simon Hart]

I know both the roads that my hon. Friend refers to—I travel on them regularly—and I am well aware of their importance to his constituency and the region’s economic future. The UK Government’s contribution to the road infrastructure is second to none. Some liaison is clearly necessary with the Welsh Government about certain aspects of that. We hope that they will publish their strategy soon and look again at their road strategy, because a simple moratorium on road improvements and new roads is not the way to restore economic prosperity in his area or anywhere else.

Oral Answers to Questions

James Davies Excerpts

Tuesday 8th February 2022 Commons Chamber

[Victoria Atkins]

The hon. Lady is absolutely right to say that our officers and staff are a critical part of protecting the public through our prisons. Without those staff and officers, our prisons simply do not function. The Deputy Prime Minister and I are looking intensively at not only the pay but the other conditions under which officers and staff are working. The hon. Lady will appreciate that we are about to enter into the pay round review, which is done by the independent body. We take that very seriously. As I have said, I also want to look at the conditions for staff and officers working in prisons, because they are the hidden emergency service that keeps us safe day in, day out.

[Dr James Davies (Vale of Clwyd) (Con)]

What plans are there to take heed of the National Audit Office’s recent comments on the delivery of the female offender strategy? Can I highlight community solutions such as the North Wales Women’s Centre in my constituency, which provides support to help tackle the root causes of crime, such as domestic abuse and poverty?

[Victoria Atkins]

I am extremely grateful to my hon. Friend for highlighting the vulnerabilities of some female offenders. We are very much committed to delivering the female offender strategy by reducing the number of women in custody and seeing a greater proportion of women managed in the community. We are investing £9.5 million in women’s community sector organisations, and the North Wales Women’s Centre received nearly £50,000 of that investment last year. I commend him and the women’s centre for doing such important work in his constituency.