Business of the House
Rachael Maskell Excerpts(2 years, 2 months ago)
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Lucy Powell
I welcome my hon. Friend to her place, and I am sorry to hear of the tragic circumstances in her constituency. This Government are committed to tackling issues around firearms—not just the symptoms, but the root causes, as she says—and there will be ample time to discuss these matters. Of course, there will be Home Office questions next week, where she may want to raise these matters further.
Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)
Hundreds of thousands of people will be visiting my fantastic city of York over the summer. However, many of them will be staying in short-term holiday lets, with one in 10 properties in the city centre being Airbnbs. Can we have a debate about how this Government will not just register Airbnbs, but license them, so that local authorities can control their housing stock?
Lucy Powell
My hon. Friend raises an important issue that affects many cities, such as my own and hers. This Government have a manifesto commitment to look at these issues and take action as soon as we can, and I am sure that she will be able to raise them with the Housing, Communities and Local Government Secretary in oral questions as soon as we come back on 2 September.
Business of the House
Rachael Maskell Excerpts(2 years, 2 months ago)
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Lucy Powell
I think the hon. Member may misunderstand the policy in this area. This Government have made it clear that we are unashamedly pro-house building. We have to tackle the housing crisis in this country and meet the target of 1.5 million new homes over the course of this Parliament, and I think that his party also pledged to deliver that target in the election campaign. As he knows, the Conservatives in government withdrew the house building targets, which then reduced figures. What we are not proposing here is a developer free-for-all. This is about good, sensible, clear local plans being drawn together and then expedited with things moving more quickly. I can reassure him on that, but frankly we will take no lectures from the Opposition on dealing with the housing crisis.
Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)
When it comes to children with special educational needs, children who have experienced trauma in their childhood or children with anxiety, local authorities carry all the risk, but do not have the resources. Our academy system is out of control and our health services are insufficient. Can we have a debate on children who experience such challenges in their early years to ensure that we address this issue early on in this Government?
Lucy Powell
May I welcome my hon. Friend back to her place? She was always vocal and committed in the last Parliament, and I have no doubt she will be so again in this Parliament. As she rightly points out, our education and care systems are not meeting the needs of children with special educational needs, often leaving them without the support they need to thrive. That is one of the issues being tackled in our children’s wellbeing Bill, announced by His Majesty the King yesterday. As she will have heard this morning, there will be a debate on education in the business next week.