Devolved Public Services: Funding

Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb Excerpts

Monday 1st June 2026 Lords Chamber

[Lord Katz (Lab)]

I repeat what I said to the noble Lord, Lord Wigley: we are investing a huge amount of money—£14 billion—in the future of Welsh rail. Also, creating more capacity on the west coast main line will in the long term provide great benefits to north Wales through the extension of the main line that already goes up through the west coast main line and serves north Wales.

[Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb (GP)]

My Lords, apart from a fair rail infrastructure allocation, which is absolutely needed—the Welsh Government are owed £4 billion for HS2 being misnamed as being for England and Wales—the Welsh Government are asking for other things, such as devolution of policing and justice and of the Crown Estate. Where do the Government stand on those issues?

[Lord Katz (Lab)]

We have created a space on the board of the Crown Estate with special responsibility for Wales; we are clear that a huge amount of investment can be driven UK wide, with the potential to create more than 5,000 jobs and bring £1.4 billion of investment into the UK economy, and we will not do anything to jeopardise that. Our policing reforms remove police and crime commissioners and bring policing closer to communities, which means we can spend more money on bobbies on the beat, which I think is what people in England and Wales want to see.