National Infrastructure Plan
Debate between Ben Gummer and Danny Alexander(10 years, 11 months ago)
Commons ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
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Danny Alexander
That is a very good question. The Welsh Government’s capital budget is allocated to them through the Barnett formula, so they have complete freedom to determine how they use the money. I urge them to consider the principles laid down in the infrastructure plan as applicable to Wales. I draw the hon. Gentleman’s attention to our decisions in responding to the Silk review, whereby the Welsh Government will now have borrowing powers, particularly to fund the M4 project, which is such an important investment not just for Wales but for the whole UK.
Ben Gummer (Ipswich) (Con)
I pay tribute to my hon. Friend the Member for Suffolk Coastal (Dr Coffey), who led the campaign on the A14 well in advance of the point at which the hon. Member for Cambridge (Dr Huppert) became pregnant on the matter. May I ask the Chief Secretary whether the diggers will arrive as promised in 2016?
Danny Alexander
Several hon. Members have been assiduous in their campaigning on this matter, but I can speak only for those who have come to lobby me personally. I am sure that a lot of remarks have been made by a lot of hon. Members, and I pay tribute to them all. The simple answer to the hon. Gentleman’s question is yes.
Finance Bill
Debate between Ben Gummer and Danny Alexander(14 years, 4 months ago)
Commons ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
Danny Alexander
I can confirm that we have carried out an analysis of the Budget across the income distribution to evaluate its fairness. We have also conducted an analysis of the impact on child poverty, which is the most important aspect. We have ensured that, even in the toughest Budget since the second world war, there will be no impact on measured child poverty—something that could not always be said of the previous Government’s Budgets.
Ben Gummer (Ipswich) (Con)
Opposition Members like talking about apprenticeships. I am a relative newcomer to the House so can my right hon. Friend enlighten me? What happened to the gap between rich and poor under the previous Government? For my information, did it get wider or narrower?
Danny Alexander
The hon. Gentleman is clearly not as much of an apprentice in this House as he claims to be. The gap between rich and poor got wider during the previous Government’s term.
The measures in the Budget have already had an impact on the credibility of and confidence in the British economy. As the director general of the CBI, for example, has said:
“This budget is the UK's first important step on the long journey back to economic health.”
The Fitch rating agency said:
“The path of deficit reduction and public debt projections set out in”
the
“Budget statement are materially stronger than that set out in the March 2010 Budget.”
On fairness, the chief executive of Barnardo’s said:
“we recognise the Government has done what it can to protect the most vulnerable.”