Oral Answers to Questions

Andrew Bridgen Excerpts

Monday 28th February 2011 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

I call Pat Glass. She is not here. I call Andrew Bridgen.

[Andrew Bridgen (North West Leicestershire) (Con)]

Does my right hon. Friend agree that it is now more important than ever that local councils maintain and strengthen their links to community and voluntary groups, because these very groups can lead to innovative ways of delivering very high quality public services?

[Greg Clark]

They can indeed, and I am grateful to my hon. Friend. Reading council, for example, has taken the opportunity to increase funding to the voluntary sector, knowing that actually it helps it to change its services and make some of the savings it is required to make.