Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Duncan Hames and Nick Boles(9 years, 11 months ago)
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The Minister for Skills and Equalities (Nick Boles)
I welcome the hon. Gentleman’s question. He was not here for the first bit of Question Time, but I am delighted he has turned up for the second bit—otherwise I was not going to get an outing at all. It is very important that young people understand the opportunities available in the logistics sector. The National Careers Service now has specific allocation to ensure that it does more work with schools. In any area of the country like his, where the logistics sector is vital, it should contact schools directly to seek opportunities. Schools are often crying out for employers who are willing to come in and talk to young people about the opportunities they can offer.
Duncan Hames (Chippenham) (LD)
Schools’ efforts have ensured the successful launch of universal free school meals. In Chippenham, Redlands primary school is bidding for a kitchen pod so it can begin to serve hot lunches, and at Holt primary school lunches are served from the staff room, which is also where the washing up is done. Will the Minister look favourably on those schools, and other growing schools, that lost their kitchens long before we introduced free school meals?
Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Duncan Hames and Nick Boles(10 years ago)
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Nick Boles
Of course the hon. Gentleman is right, which is why we introduced the apprenticeship minimum wage, which did not exist until we did so, but he is also right that we need to make sure that the level is fair. Nevertheless, the chief value of an apprenticeship for the young person is the training and the preparation it gives them to create a career, so we need to strike the right balance: we need to make sure we set this at a fair level, but also encourage more employers to create apprenticeships, so that more young people are in education and in training and not on benefits.
Duncan Hames (Chippenham) (LD)
15. What progress his Department has made on facilitating projects identified in the Swindon and Wiltshire strategic economic plan.
Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Duncan Hames and Nick Boles(10 years ago)
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Duncan Hames (Chippenham) (LD)
T3. School sixth forms have a different funding formula, but they are under a lot of financial pressure. As the participation age is raised, they find themselves having to do a lot more with less. When will the Government be able to extend the protection of schools funding, which currently goes only up to age 16, to include sixth forms as well?
The Minister for Skills and Equalities (Nick Boles)
It is right—I think my hon. Friend would agree—to focus funding on school-aged children below 16, because that is the stage in life at which education has the most dramatic impact on the young person’s chances. That is why he is a supporter of and part of a Government who protected school funding up to the age of 16, but was unable to extend that protection to sixth forms—
Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Duncan Hames and Nick Boles
Nick Boles
I am grateful for the opportunity to confirm that it absolutely will not undermine localism, as local development orders have to go through the same local consultation as any other local planning permission. The fundamental difference with local development orders is that the local council effectively determines up front the broad parameters of development that will be acceptable. Any proposal that meets those broad conditions can then go ahead. It is a bit like a zoning system rather than our traditional system of submitting a particular planning application for every site. It is absolutely something that is driven locally and led by local councils.
Duncan Hames (Chippenham) (LD)
Among his reforms, will the Minister review the business rate exemptions available for derelict buildings further to incentivise owners of those builders to redevelop those sites or otherwise bring them back into use?
Nick Boles
We will always look at any new ideas, but I am sure that my hon. Friend will welcome the fact that anyone who takes on premises that have been empty for quite a long time can now get a level of exemption that was previously not available.
Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Duncan Hames and Nick Boles
Duncan Hames (Chippenham) (LD)
Why does the Minister think Wiltshire council is yet to adopt a local development framework for the north of the county? What advice would he give to bring some order to planning and development around Chippenham and Corsham?
Nick Boles
It is probably fair to concede that for a council that has recently become unitary this is an intensely complicated process. Nevertheless, that council knew that it was taking on the responsibility and it now needs to get a move on and complete the plan.
Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Duncan Hames and Nick Boles
Duncan Hames (Chippenham) (LD)
The Planning Minister told us earlier that local councils getting their local plans adopted was the best thing for them to do, but is that sufficient to enable them to defend those policies against the increasingly confident threats from developers to overturn them on appeal on the ground of a lack of a five-year housing supply?
Nick Boles
I am happy to reassure my hon. Friend that it certainly is sufficient. One of the decisions that I have most enjoyed taking in this job has been to support the decision of a local authority, which had well in excess of a five-year land supply, to refuse an application for speculative development in an area where it did not want development.
Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Duncan Hames and Nick Boles
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (Nick Boles)
The hon. Gentleman can use as much purple prose as he likes—his books are full of it, and very good they are, too—but that will not change the fact that the national planning policy framework is succeeding far better than any previous planning regime in getting local authorities to draw up local plans that put them in charge of making decisions about development in their areas. That is the truth, and he knows it.
Duncan Hames (Chippenham) (LD)
I know that the Minister will want to avoid unnecessary job losses in front-line local government services, so what guidance will he give to local authorities on the retention of marriage registrars once the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Bill becomes law?