Implications of Devolution for England Debate

Full Debate: Read Full Debate
Department: Leader of the House

Implications of Devolution for England

Lord Beecham Excerpts
Tuesday 16th December 2014

(9 years, 11 months ago)

Lords Chamber
Read Full debate Read Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
Lord Beecham Portrait Lord Beecham (Lab)
- Hansard - -

My Lords, is the Leader aware that the Prime Minister’s pledge on the morning after the referendum about English votes for English laws, and the proposals in this White Paper, are in fact an answer to the SNP’s prayers and will reinforce it considerably? Will the Leader also explain why in chapter 2 of the document Decentralisation and Localism in England: Achievements to Date, there is no mention of the singular achievement of the Government in imposing the biggest ever cuts on local government funding to the extent that even Conservative councils believe that by the end of this decade they will be able to provide only statutory services—if them alone?

Baroness Stowell of Beeston Portrait Baroness Stowell of Beeston
- Hansard - - - Excerpts

As the noble Lord knows, what we have done in this Parliament and through this Government is given greater power to local authorities in terms of control of their own finances. They are now in a much greater position than they were before to make the kind of steps that are about real change in their approach to providing services for local authorities.