Oral Answers to Questions

James Daly Excerpts

Tuesday 6th July 2021 Commons Chamber

[Paul Scully]

What a fantastic story. In just 18 months, my hon. Friend has shown the impact of his work across his home town. He is absolutely right. Dewsbury’s transformative £24.8 million investment will make it a more attractive place to live, work and invest by supporting projects that deliver that enhanced business environment, such as the arcade to be reopened to small independent businesses and Dewsbury market to be transformed into a modern-day market, with fibre network improvements and repurposing underused sites. This is really going to boost Dewsbury’s reputation as a place for starting and growing a business.

[James Daly (Bury North) (Con)]

In November last year, the Government report on the first statutory review of the pubs code was published. It proposed certain changes that could improve the operation of the code. Will my hon. Friend update the House on whether those changes have been implemented? Does he believe that further statutory provisions are required to adequately protect the interests of tied tenants and ensure a future for thousands of pubs throughout the country?

[Paul Scully]

I thank my hon. Friend for his interest in a really important area of supporting pubs. We will shortly publish a consultation to seek views on detailed options to improve the practical operation of the pubs code. It is important that all interested parties are able to comment, given the code’s complexity and potential impact on property rights. It covers just under 8,700 tied pub tenants in England and Wales, so it is only a small proportion of businesses in the hospitality sector, but a very important proportion. Next year, we will launch a second statutory review to seek stakeholders’ views on the effectiveness of the pubs code.