English Devolution

Bayo Alaba Excerpts

Monday 16th December 2024 Commons Chamber

[Jim McMahon]

I thank the hon. Gentleman, who is my predecessor, for his question and for the tone with which he dealt with us in opposition; I honour that in return. The fair funding review is absolutely critical. We are committed to a multi-year financial settlement, which is about giving security, but we all know there is no security if the money is insufficient to meet demand. The hon. Gentleman and the House have absolute assurance that all the cost factors, including the cost of rural service delivery, will be taken into account in a fair funding review.

[Mr Bayo Alaba (Southend East and Rochford) (Lab)]

In comparable countries, a city like Southend would generate £55 billion more across the country. Will the Minister explain what powers the English devolution Bill will give to mayors, so they can drive local growth and areas can fulfil their financial potential?

[Jim McMahon]

I remember when the Greater Manchester devolution deal was signed in 2014. Its principles were to reform public services, so we could focus on prevention rather than crisis management, which is more expensive and has worse outcomes, and grow the local tax base, because the area would become more productive through investment. I will be honest and say that we did not see the investment in prevention reform, so growth was stunted. However, even in that context, growth in Greater Manchester has outperformed that of other areas, in large part because of the devolution agreement and the leadership and co-ordination involved. Even by independent assessments, allowing our regions to realise their full potential would be worth between £30 billion and £50 billion to the economy that is not currently being realised, so there is an alternative and we have to grasp it.

Responsibilities of Housing Developers

Bayo Alaba Excerpts

Wednesday 11th December 2024 Westminster Hall

[Mr Bayo Alaba (Southend East and Rochford) (Lab)]

It is an honour to speak under your chairmanship, Mr Pritchard. I thank the hon. Member for Keighley and Ilkley (Robbie Moore) for securing this much-needed debate, and I will try to avoid party politics, because I do not really think this is about that. Although it is less often said, I see a responsibility that housing developers ought to fulfil post construction: the appointment of reliable management companies to ensure the upkeep of estates. One of the reasons why I am here today is to talk about that.

Developers should ensure a smooth transition to reliable and reputable management companies but, as I am sure hon. Members know from their casework, that job is often not completed. Unfortunately, for a number of my constituents in Rochford, some housing developers have failed to do their due diligence and appoint reliable and accessible management companies. For example, residents in the Elizabeth Gardens estate on Hall road in Rochford are being forced to pay a lump sum in excess of £300 in annual service fees. They are asked to pay that in one go, rather than in instalments, which is one example of how inflexible some management companies can be with new residents who move into certain communities.

As I am sure we have all heard before, grass is not being cut, areas are not being maintained and fees are unaccounted for, and the list goes on. Thus far, residents have not been offered the opportunity to pay in monthly instalments, which goes to show that again they are not necessarily being listened to. Although the service is supposed to be for them, as the hon. Member for Chichester (Jess Brown-Fuller) said, they are not really part of the decision-making process. That is a real source of frustration, and residents would not mind so much if they were getting the services they were promised. Does the Minister agree that it is important that housing developers take responsibility and appoint reliable, reasonable management companies?

Another key issue that I am keen to raise is the over-zealous housing developers who maintain a financial interest in the properties to the detriment of residents. A housing developer in my constituency is maintaining their financial interest by imposing an annual fixed rent charge of £1. That may sound insignificant to many people, but some mortgage lenders are reluctant to lend on the said properties due to such technical financial interest. That prevents young families looking to either remortgage or move out of their property from doing so. Residents can request a deed of variation, which is one way in which they can come out of that situation, but the fees for those deeds are £1,200, so it is prohibitive. This is about being responsible and reasonable with residents’ money.

I thank the hon. Member for Keighley and Ilkley again for securing the debate. I look forward to hearing the Minister’s comments.

City and Town Centres: Regeneration

Bayo Alaba Excerpts

Wednesday 16th October 2024 Westminster Hall

[Mr Bayo Alaba (Southend East and Rochford) (Lab)]

I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Derby North (Catherine Atkinson) for securing the debate, which is incredibly important to me and my constituency of Southend East and Rochford. When we talk about high streets and city centre regeneration, we are talking about so much more than just the retail industry. The ripple effect is clear: declining footfall also threatens hospitality, cultural amenities, tourism and employment. The list is actually endless.

One reason why I stood to be the MP for Southend East and Rochford is that I can see how much potential the area has to offer. For a coastal community in the commuter belt of London, regenerating the city centre and high streets, such as Hamlet Court Road, will be key to unlocking a prosperous local economy. I have met a multitude of local businesses to understand the challenges they face and discussed a strategy to revive our high streets. They have told me about the difficulties in covering business rates, utility bills and the decreased footfall caused by antisocial behaviour, which ironically increases as our shops and venues close down.

A by-product of a vibrant high street is that it is a gateway for young people, providing soft skills and equipping them for the future. Last week, I met with bar operators on Alexandra Street who I know will be vital to the regeneration of the city centre in Southend. Independent businesses, such as IndiRock, are reinventing what the high street has to offer and paving the way for businesses to come. I have had a long career in regeneration and the hospitality industry and, chatting to the organisations at the forefront of Southend’s offer, I felt inspired that there was a collective of new businesses looking to reanimate the town centre. It is now our obligation to support them with strong, forward-thinking policy, giving them the foundations to grow their business and to elevate the communities that they are in.

Another important aspect of a vibrant high street is the circular economy, which is limited in Southend East and Rochford because of its struggling high streets. We need to put the mechanisms in place that see every pound spent circulated locally three, four or even five times. That is the goal of any community that wants to future-proof its relevance. Economic growth is the defining mission of this Government and ensuring thriving local high streets is essential to that. As MPs, we need to work towards effective partnerships with local authorities and business associations to realise that mission locally and to restore vibrancy to our high streets. I am filled with the hope that visitors to Southend East and Rochford will step off a train from Southend Victoria or Southend Central and will know from the thriving, bustling and prosperous high street that our local area is well worth a return visit.