Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Elizabeth Truss and Laurence Robertson

Wednesday 19th October 2022 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

I have been very clear that I am sorry and that I have made mistakes, but the right thing to do in those circumstances is to make changes, which I have made, and to get on with the job and deliver for the British people. We have delivered the energy price guarantee, we have helped people this winter, and I will continue to do that.

[Mr Laurence Robertson (Tewkesbury) (Con)]

Q3.   Does the Prime Minister agree that local people and local councils are best placed to decide how many houses they need and where those houses should go? If she does, will she end the top-down approach to housing targets and reduce, or preferably remove, the powers of the Planning Inspectorate?

[The Prime Minister]

My hon. Friend is absolutely right; we will abolish the top-down housing targets. We want decisions about homes and infrastructure to be driven by local people, not by Whitehall, and that is why we are setting up new, locally driven investment zones.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Elizabeth Truss and Laurence Robertson

Tuesday 24th January 2017 Commons Chamber

[Elizabeth Truss]

I am delighted to hear that the Labour party wants to support the will of the British people. That is a welcome development. As I have said, I am intensely proud of our independent judiciary—it is a core part of our democracy—but I am also proud to live in a country that has a free press.

[Mr Laurence Robertson (Tewkesbury) (Con)]

T3. Will consideration be given to whether the courts give both parents fair access to their children? There is a perception that, on occasions, fathers do not get the fair access that they deserve.

Flooding

Debate between Elizabeth Truss and Laurence Robertson

Tuesday 5th January 2016 Commons Chamber

[Elizabeth Truss]

I thank the hon. Gentleman for his question. As I have said, the A591 is a national priority. For the first time ever we have Highways England working on it to ensure that that happens as soon as possible.

[Mr Laurence Robertson (Tewkesbury) (Con)]

Although I am absolutely certain that most members of the Environment Agency did work very hard over the Christmas period, does the Secretary of State agree that institutionally the agency is often found lacking when it comes to flood prevention? It seems to lack dynamism, a cohesive approach and the determination to follow through with schemes, which the agency itself often identifies and which local people identify. In Tewkesbury we are well aware of the problems associated with flooding. I have to say that in my area there is a frustration about the operation of the Environment Agency.

[Elizabeth Truss]

I thank my hon. Friend for his question. As I said, I was in Yorkshire on Boxing day. What I saw on the ground was some fantastic staff from the Environment Agency working around the clock to protect lives and save people. That is vital. Of course, any organisation needs to learn and get better at doing things. We have a new chief executive, Sir James Bevan, who was with me in Yorkshire on Boxing day. He is clear that he wants to put people in homes and that that is the agency’s No.1 priority. He is going to ensure that any issues raised by MPs are taken seriously and addressed.