Adnan Hussain
Main Page: Adnan Hussain (Independent - Blackburn)Department Debates - View all Adnan Hussain's debates with the HM Treasury
(1 month, 1 week ago)
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Emma Reynolds
I would disagree, because the mayoral strategic authorities are about local authorities coming together in a combined authority and working together across the borders of the west midlands—an area I know extremely well. This is about driving growth and driving good decisions across the region.
Mr Adnan Hussain (Blackburn) (Ind)
The Chief Secretary has promised good growth in every postcode. Blackburn has the talent, the institutions and the major employers—such as EG On the Move—that are willing to invest in local people, but we need Government investment to match that ambition. Will the Chief Secretary make Blackburn a test case for this plan and back an employer-led jobs and skills partnership to create good local jobs?
Emma Reynolds
We are working in close partnership with business, and the hon. Gentleman is right to say that we have to unleash talent and business investment in his own constituency and elsewhere, but as I said to the Chair of the Treasury Committee, the way that the public financial institutions work is by independently assessing the potential of firms and then backing them. That is what the Chancellor was talking about today. We set the strategic priorities and those independent economic organisations assess projects for their potential.