Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Ben Lake and Jo Stevens(2 weeks, 6 days ago)
Commons ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
Ben Lake (Ceredigion Preseli) (PC)
The Secretary of State for Wales (Jo Stevens)
Through the spending review, we are providing a record £22.4 billion per year on average for the Welsh Government; investing at least £445 million in Welsh rail; investing £211 million a year in local growth funding; and providing £118 million of new funding for coal tip safety. This Labour Government are investing in Wales’s economy, public services and people. We have ended Conservative austerity.
Jo Stevens
I very much agree with the hon. Lady about the benefits to the Union of the significant investment that this Government are making in transport. I am very happy to take away her comment on Lumo and open access, and talk to the Rail Minister on her behalf.
Ben Lake
I was pleased to hear the Secretary of State explain in evidence to the Welsh Affairs Committee last week that Wales will receive a Barnett consequential of some £200 million as a result of transport announcements for English mayoral combined authority areas made in the lead up to the spending review. Could the Secretary of State clarify whether she was referring to the transport for city regions funding, which was announced on 4 June? The Chief Secretary to the Treasury stated in an answer to a written question that it was not possible to identify the specific Barnett consequential arising from that programme.
Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Ben Lake and Jo Stevens(7 months, 3 weeks ago)
Commons ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
Ben Lake (Ceredigion Preseli) (PC)
The Secretary of State for Wales (Jo Stevens)
If I may, I first want to thank the workers and emergency responders across Wales for all their work over the weekend to protect people and property during Storm Darragh. I am sure the whole House will join me in sending condolences to the families of the two people who lost their lives.
The autumn Budget delivered for Wales for the first time in a generation, and the Welsh Government have received the largest settlement in real terms since devolution, at £21 billion. That includes an additional £1.7 billion through the Barnett formula, providing a spending boost to public services such as the NHS.
Ben Lake
I associate myself with the words of the Secretary of State about all those impacted by Storm Darragh and all those working hard to restore power.
The Welsh Government’s draft Budget yesterday noted that the UK Government will be providing additional support to mitigate the cost to public organisations of the additional employers’ national insurance contributions. However, the details remain to be published. Given that many of these organisations will soon be setting their own budgets, could the Secretary of State urge the Treasury to bring forward clarity urgently so that local authorities and public organisations in Wales can have the clarity they need to set their budgets?
Jo Stevens
The Welsh Government will receive additional funds to help with the cost of national insurance contributions, on top of that record Budget settlement of £21 billion—the biggest since the dawn of devolution. However, that critical funding and all the investment announced in the Budget yesterday by the Welsh Government will only get to where it is needed if the hon. Gentleman’s party colleagues in the Senedd vote for the Budget.