Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Andrea Leadsom and John Glen

Tuesday 21st March 2023 Commons Chamber

[John Glen]

I do not accept the overall characterisation that the hon. Lady has given. Just in November last year, 428,000 families and 511,000 children benefited from tax-free childcare. The announcements last week will make a significant contribution, and of course that work will start immediately, with the Department for Education consultation. We have a commitment of £204 million for the coming financial year, and £288 million for the following year, to increase supply so that we can deliver this as quickly as possible.

[Dame Andrea Leadsom (South Northamptonshire) (Con)]

I congratulate the Treasury team on the excellent new policy of providing much more childcare support to families. Will my right hon. Friend persuade the Chancellor to meet me and a small group of colleagues to talk about the policy in the round and about how we can give more support to all families, providing more flexibility where informal childcare is provided—for example, by grandparents—and ensuring that families who want to look after their children at home are not, in effect, left out and left in poverty as a result of the decisions they make for their family?

Autumn Statement Resolutions

Debate between Andrea Leadsom and John Glen

Monday 21st November 2022 Commons Chamber

[John Glen]

My view is that we want to maximise the productive capacity of the labour force that exists in this country. That means doing everything we can to encourage people to take the opportunities that exist across the economy.

[Dame Andrea Leadsom (South Northamptonshire) (Con)]

In my opinion, the real issue in the UK is that there are some unintended hidden cliff edges, particularly for women with children. They want to work, but once they start working for 16 hours, a lot hangs off that, such as free school lunches for one child or free childcare for a two-year-old. If they start working more hours, they are worried that they might start losing all sorts of other benefits and will not be able to afford to work. It is not a question of who thinks people are too lazy, but there is a real question for the Treasury, which I hope will be considered, on how to resolve those unintended cliff edges.

[John Glen]

I thank my right hon. Friend for her observations; she is one of the most respected voices in the House on this subject, and I am happy to meet her to go into some detail on where we are and what she thinks can be done.

I will now turn to infrastructure, innovation and growth.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Andrea Leadsom and John Glen

Thursday 24th November 2016 Commons Chamber

[Andrea Leadsom]

If I may say so, that was nonsense. Food prices have been dropping after peaking in 2008, and they do move up and down. On the hon. Lady’s point about the resilience of the food and drink sector, exports this year are well up on last year and growth in the sector is booming. We are doing everything we can on food innovation and getting young people into apprenticeships in increasingly high-technology jobs. This is a well-organised sector with great potential.

[John Glen (Salisbury) (Con)]

In several conversations with the National Farmers Union and farmers in south Wiltshire, complaints have been made to me about how the Rural Payments Agency has been working. Edward Martin and Will Dickson complain of unilateral changes to agreed eligibility calculations. What will the Minister do to ensure that such issues are sorted out so that I do not have any more complaints from my farmers?

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Andrea Leadsom and John Glen

Tuesday 10th March 2015 Commons Chamber

[John Glen (Salisbury) (Con)]

When considering the allocation of LIBOR fines, will Treasury Ministers consider carefully the submission of Alabaré Christian Care in my constituency? It is seeking to construct a new veterans village in Wilton that will be transformational for veterans across Wiltshire.

[Andrea Leadsom]

I am grateful to my hon. Friend for that question. As he will know, the LIBOR fines imposed on banks for the appalling rigging of LIBOR are being used for mainly military charities, and a few other ideas have been put forward. I shall bear his remarks in mind and mention them to the Chancellor.