Business of the House Debate

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Department: Leader of the House

Business of the House

Alistair Strathern Excerpts
Thursday 25th July 2024

(3 months, 2 weeks ago)

Commons Chamber
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Lucy Powell Portrait Lucy Powell
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My hon. Friend is absolutely right. In the last Parliament, we saw living standards fall for the first time in our history, which is why many people voted Labour at the election. They want change, and they want their living standards restored. We have a wide range of policies to that end, and he might want to raise some of these issues next week, when we will debate the fiscal responsibility Bill. Of course, it was the last Government, in which the shadow Leader of the House was the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, who crashed the economy and sent mortgage rates sky high.

Alistair Strathern Portrait Alistair Strathern (Hitchin) (Lab)
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From Stotfold to Shefford, parents, pupils and schools alike have been let down by my council’s failure to deliver a long-promised three-tier to two-tier school transition. Given the challenges that the council is clearly having in delivering that on its own, will the Secretary of State for Education make a statement about how the Department can best support the council to finally get it over the line?

Lucy Powell Portrait Lucy Powell
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I will arrange for the Secretary of State to address that very important matter, which relates to my hon. Friend’s constituency and the transition from a three-tier to a two-tier education system.