Oral Answers to Questions

Emma Lewell-Buck Excerpts

Monday 27th January 2014 Commons Chamber

[Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck (South Shields) (Lab)]

6. What assessment she has made of the potential effect of reductions in local authority funding on police forces.

[The Secretary of State for the Home Department (Mrs Theresa May)]

Funding for local authorities is a matter for the Communities Secretary. The Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act 2011 puts in place two related, reciprocal duties for police and crime commissioners to co-operate with partners. These duties ensure that local leaders work together to achieve the most effective outcomes for their areas. PCCs are already working with local partners to ensure that they provide the services the public needs, and we encourage them to continue do so.

[Mrs Lewell-Buck]

I thank the Secretary of State for her response, but the fact remains that people across Northumbria are being unfairly hit with savage reductions in local authority budgets and a loss of nearly 400 front- line police officers, which has resulted in an increase in violent crime. With this toxic combination stretching the fabric of partnership working and community policing to breaking point, what steps is the right hon. Lady taking to stem the rise in violent crime and reassure our communities and my constituents across Northumbria?

[Mrs May]

I am pleased to say that crime survey figures show overall across the country that violent crime is down by some 13%, but I refer the hon. Lady to the answer that I gave earlier to her hon. Friend the hon. Member for Newcastle upon Tyne Central (Chi Onwurah) about Northumbria. The PCC and the chief constable in Northumbria are looking to use technology to work more effectively and looking at ensuring that they collaborate with local partners so that they continue to provide the effective police service that her constituents and the PCC’s constituents want in Northumbria.

Oral Answers to Questions

Emma Lewell-Buck Excerpts

Thursday 12th December 2013 Commons Chamber

[Mr Vaizey]

It is very important that this wonderful grade 2 listed farm is protected from development as far as possible, and any development around it should be as sympathetic as possible. English Heritage runs a fantastic heritage protection service in this country, which will only be enhanced by the new model that we have just announced.

[Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck (South Shields) (Lab)]

T6. In South Shields, more than £2.8 million has been lost on high stakes, fixed-odds betting terminals. Those machines allow players to gamble as much as £100 every 20 seconds and have already been banned by a number of countries. Will the Minister take action to tackle the damage that the machines do and back Labour’s call to limit the maximum stake on these machines to £2?

[Mrs Grant]

There is absolutely no green light for fixed-odds betting terminals. Their future will be kept under review pending further work, which has already started.