Residential Estate Management Companies

Jayne Kirkham Excerpts

Tuesday 22nd April 2025 Westminster Hall

[Jayne Kirkham (Truro and Falmouth) (Lab/Co-op)]

I am grateful to the hon. Member for South Devon (Caroline Voaden) for securing this debate. Since I first wrote on social media asking my constituents whether they had been affected by fleecehold, I have had hundreds of messages, showing how much of a problem this is across the country. The way we build, own and manage homes these days has become incredibly complex. It is frustratingly difficult to unravel it, or to hold anyone to account.

I spent Tuesday taking officers from FirstPort around the Cornish properties that the company manages. It gave the residents a good chance to ask questions about repairs that had not been done and service charges that they felt were not transparent. The officers dealt with queries openly and constructively. However, it is frustrating that it took my intervention for that to happen.

On Wednesday, I visited a relatively new estate in a village in the middle of the constituency, to look at—among other things—broken drains. The drains were not made to withstand cars driving over them, yet they are used in parking bays. The gulley does not drain and is blocked. Neither the builder, freehold owner, managing agent, housing provider nor council has accepted responsibility.

Adoption is an issue. One resident I met had been living on the estate for 13 years. The developer, Persimmon, finished the estate in 2012 but, as I understand it, because the school included in the plans was not finished, the estate is regarded as unfinished. The developer continues to own the roads and some green spaces, and remains the residents’ managing company. Residents are stuck in limbo, unable to take on the freehold ownership, and have no control over the managing agents. Residents have spoken to me about yearly service charge increases, ranging from 16% to 30%. They get a letter from the managing agent with a breakdown of costs, which are very general, lacking any explanation of why they are going up.

Procurement is also an issue. Residents of an estate in Truro were charged more than £12,000 in advance of felling a tree. That was the only quote obtained at the time and was added to residents’ bills as the maximum they could expect to pay, with the difference to be refunded in following years. That still has not happened, although that occurred about three years ago. Communication is a real issue: emails regularly go unanswered, property managers are unavailable or uncontactable, and owners’ meetings have not been held.

I would like to end by quoting one of my constituents, who lives in a fleecehold property:

“Overall it’s their lack of engagement and their attitude towards us that annoys many. They do what they want and charge us what they like and we simply have to pay up. There’s no regulation and virtually no way residents can complain…other than a potentially complex and expensive legal process.”

I am hopeful that this environment will begin to change with the implementation of the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024 and the introduction of the leasehold and commonhold reform Bill. The Government are committed to ending the unjust practice of fleecehold and will hopefully consult this year on how to reduce the prevalence of private estate management arrangements. I am sure that will be welcomed by my constituents and others across the country.

Coastal Communities

Jayne Kirkham Excerpts

Thursday 20th March 2025 Commons Chamber

[Jayne Kirkham (Truro and Falmouth) (Lab/Co-op)]

Our coastal communities are likely to have higher deprivation living alongside great wealth. They are often creative hubs. Cornwall attracts many artists and musicians, and Falmouth has the world-class Falmouth University, which grew out of a 100-year-old art school. People come from all across the country and the world to visit our beaches and coastline. However, I am worried about the shore management plan, and managed alignment poses a risk to our beach cafés, car parks and economy in Cornwall.

The port of Falmouth is still very significant: we maintain and repair ships, including military ships, we host cruise ships with new green energy onshore plug-ins, and we have plans to regenerate the port to service floating offshore wind and to reinstate the freight railway. However, wages are lower than the national average, many jobs are seasonal and insecure, and hospitality businesses struggle with low margins. The permanently lower business rates that will be introduced in April next year after the business rates discount expires will help a great deal, as long as the rate is permanently lower than the current rate, rather than the full rate from pre-covid. Skills shortages are significant, particularly in hospitality, but also in other skilled professions, and house prices are 13 times wages.

There are 24,500 properties for short-term let in Cornwall, up 30% on 2019, while 27,000 households are on the social housing waiting list. Second homes account for nearly 5% of our housing stock. I welcome the Renters’ Rights Bill, but we also need a toolbox of measures to tackle second homes and short-term lets, including a registration or licensing scheme. Good holiday companies are actually calling for safety inspection measures, and for the closure of the business rates council tax loophole.

In addition, Cornwall has faced underfunding in health, social care and education for years. I, too, support the call for a broader Government strategy on coastal communities, because every policy affects us in potentially different ways from in urban areas.

Oral Answers to Questions

Jayne Kirkham Excerpts

Monday 20th January 2025 Commons Chamber

[Angela Rayner]

We know that we need infrastructure as part of our planning reforms and the mandatory housing targets that we have put forward, and this Government will make sure that that infrastructure is there. I would say to the hon. Gentleman that it was his Government who allowed speculative housing developments, who failed to meet their housing targets and who left people without the houses they desperately needed.

[Jayne Kirkham (Truro and Falmouth) (Lab/Co-op)]

We have a number of schemes for social housing in Cornwall that rely on the affordable homes programme that ends in 2026. Can the Secretary of State confirm that there will not be a gap in the provision of funding so that the provision of those homes can continue?

English Devolution

Jayne Kirkham Excerpts

Monday 16th December 2024 Commons Chamber

[Jim McMahon]

That is a fair point. I am losing track of the number of MPs who are standing up to declare they are still councillors, although I recognise there is a transition—I went through it myself—and there may be an overlap between being a councillor and a Member of Parliament. On the detail of individual counties, it is for local areas to make a submission to Government, and for the Government to assess the proposals that come forward. The Government do not have a plan on a map for the hon. Lady’s county, but we expect that the county and the district will get together to work out a proposal that they can accept and submit to Government, which we can then review.

[Jayne Kirkham (Truro and Falmouth) (Lab/Co-op)]

Cornwall will welcome further devolution. We are a long way from London, but I want to build on the question about town councils. In places like Cornwall, cuts to unitary councils have meant town councils have already taken on a lot of responsibility, so how does the Minister see those town councils continuing in the future?

[Jim McMahon]

When Labour was last in government, we brought forward landmark legislation to create the Mayor of London, Parliaments in Scotland and Wales and the Assembly in Northern Ireland. The quality council status was introduced for parish and town councils, and powers on wellbeing and other matters were given to local government. The previous Labour Government recognised, just as this Government recognise, that devolution has to work from the top to the bottom and the right powers have to be in the right places. At a neighbourhood level, we see town and parish councils playing a critical role in devolution, and we look forward to further discussions with the sector.

Non-Domestic Rating (Multipliers and Private Schools) Bill (First sitting)

Jayne Kirkham Excerpts

Committee stage
Wednesday 11th December 2024 Public Bill Committees

[Martin Wrigley (Newton Abbot) (LD)]

Q Thank you for coming today. The Co-op is a vital element of many of the communities in my area in south Devon. It is a mainstay of many communities. In the Bill I am interested in the jump between the small business rates and the large business rates based on a rateable value of £51,000. Is that an issue for you in terms of deterring expansion and improvement of stores, or is that not something that you worry about?

Paul Gerrard: As I think I said in an answer to an earlier question, it is one of the factors that we will bear in mind. I do not think it would necessarily be the deciding factor to either open or keep open a store. There will be other things that we would take into account, such as crime or a change in demographic and footfall. It is a factor, but I am not sure that it is the determining factor.

[Jayne Kirkham (Truro and Falmouth) (Lab/Co-op)]

Q Hello, Mr Gerrard. Thank you for coming today. I am a Labour and Co-operative MP, so I am pleased to hear that you think the Bill will be good for the Co-operative Group. My first question is about the limit. You say that it will probably help you overall. Perhaps this is hard for you to answer, but for retail as a group, do you think that it is set at the right level?

Secondly, you said that the Bill may have positive effects for your smaller stores, in that you may be able to employ more people, and I wonder whether you can expand on that. The Co-operative shops in Truro and Falmouth are having issues at the moment with theft and violence against shop workers, which is not good, and the BID is providing support. Would the Bill give you the leeway to employ more people, even security people?

Paul Gerrard: I will start at the beginning, and hopefully cover all the questions. This is good for the Co-op Group as a whole. There are ups and downs, because 8% of our estate would not benefit—indeed, it may cost us—but overall it is a good thing. As well as being a director of the Co-op Group, I am a board member at Co-operatives UK, which is the apex body, and this is good for the co-operative movement. That is the first point.

At present, the rate system does not incentivise improvement or growth. There is a link to your question here: for example, if we put in CCTV to keep our colleagues safe, our rates bill goes up. If we put in air conditioning, not just for food safety but to reduce the ambient temperature and so the amount of refrigeration we need, our rates bill goes up. The rate system should incentivise growth. The structure—the two rates for under £500,000 and under £51,000—does incentivise investment and growth, and for us that would mean more shops and employing more people, but I am not sure the way the reliefs work does that. As I understand it, the improvements relief has to do with the shell of the shop, so putting in CCTV or a coffee machine will result in an increase in rates. So that structure definitely incentivises growth, but there are details about whether the system as a whole does.

The Co-op has been very loud on the issue of crime, and I have been to this place a number of times to give evidence about it. We very much welcome the rates proposals. It is self-evident that the changes the Chancellor made on national insurance contributions will cost us money, but we understand the choices that were made. What got a bit lost was what the Government announced on crime: a £5 million investment in Pegasus, 13,000 officers and the stand-alone offence. That will impact us: crime costs us £120 million a year and costs the sector £3 billion a year, so if we can make any kind of dent in that, we will get the leeway that you talked about.

Seeing these things in the round is important. On crime, it is about colleagues and security—we have doubled the money we spend on security—but it is principally about the way businesses and the police work. If businesses and the police work well, we can begin to tackle crime. The work that Chief Constable Amanda Blakeman, at North Wales police, has done in the past year on behalf of all police forces has been important, and we are beginning to see a much-improved police response.

[Michelle Welsh (Sherwood Forest) (Lab)]

Q I should probably confess that one of my first jobs was working at a Co-op—I do not know whether that is for the register of interests. In my constituency, we have seen the huge impact of a local store closing, especially on the most disadvantaged and most vulnerable. Over the years, I have been concerned about access to healthy food, children’s access to food and the ability of people with young babies to walk to a local shop. For many of my communities in Sherwood Forest, this is not about having food delivered; it is about being able to access it locally and frequently, because people are having to manage their money on a daily basis, not a monthly basis. They are buying one meal at a time, for example. The Co-op has played a vital role over the years and continues to do so.

We have seen the demise over the years of many local stores—not the Co-op, but generally, the store in the middle of the community that knows the local people. When I worked at my local store, I knew that if someone did not turn up for their Sunday paper, there was a problem. Promoting that sort of community feeling crosses all Government Departments, not just those dealing with health and wellbeing. Do you think the Bill will help to ensure that your local stores become more accessible and that you will maintain your connections with your community, and that it will be about working with the Government in all areas that deal with combating poverty and child poverty and improving child health?

Paul Gerrard: The short answer is yes. Fundamentally, the Bill will ease the burden of rates on small retail and leisure premises. That is the bottom line. Two thirds of our estate are below £51,000; they are the sort of shops you just described. The Bill will significantly reduce the burden on them and on shops between £51,000 and £500,000, so I think it will help.

In a number of things we have done, including our loneliness campaign, and in tackling retail crime, we see how shops in general can be anchor institutions for communities. I do not think we always recognise that in policy, but I think the Bill does recognise it in saying that that is, by definition, a good thing. Government could think more about what all sorts of retail can do—not just economically or in terms of jobs, but in terms of the impact they can have in communities. The Bill recognises that as a policy principle, and I think that can be a first step to thinking more about the way shops support and function in communities.

--- Later in debate ---

[Jayne Kirkham]

Q I will be very quick. On what you said about the higher limits, it would just be supermarkets, would it not, because they are bigger?

Helen Dickinson: It would not just be supermarkets; it would be larger shops.

[Jayne Kirkham]

Q I was going to bring in hospitality and leisure, which is probably something I will ask other witnesses about later. I am from Cornwall, where we have some big leisure and hospitality sites. To look at exemptions purely for shops—

Helen Dickinson: There is absolute recognition that there should be other exemptions for larger premises if the goal is about retail, leisure and hospitality.

[Jayne Kirkham]

Then you are looking at a much bigger thing.

Helen Dickinson: The proportion in retail is much bigger than the proportion in leisure. We will share some data with the Committee, because we looked at retail and hospitality as well. I agree that it should be both.

[The Chair]

I am afraid that brings us to the end of our allotted time. I thank the witnesses for their evidence.

Examination of Witness

Stuart Adam gave evidence.

--- Later in debate ---

[Vikki Slade]

Q In Northern Ireland, there is a single regional rate and then a local levy. Do you have views about whether there should be any local influence in terms of these determinants reflecting higher rents, particularly in the south-east or south-west, that put lots of businesses above the £51,000 threshold?

Stuart Adam: There are a number of questions. One is how far the rates should be set locally versus centrally. Obviously there was a history there of them being centralised in 1990. There is a question as to how much localism you want. If you are going to have local taxes, property taxes are a pretty good choice—housing more so than business property taxes. But if you wanted to localise more taxes, business rates would not be a bad choice. There might be things you can do along the lines that we have seen already about, for example, having a ballot of local businesses as a requirement and that kind of thing. There is a case for whether it should be local or central—I do not have a strong view either way.

There is a question as to how far the revenues should be redistributed across the country and whether areas that get more business rates revenue should have more funding as a result. That, again, comes into a broader question about the local government finance system. It is not obvious that just happening to have more high value businesses in an area is a good reason for that area to get more revenue. I think there is a better argument for things such as business rates retention, where you want to give local authorities some incentives, some reward, for having more businesses, encouraging them and generating local economic growth and so on.

There is then a question about whether, even if it is set centrally, the rates and thresholds of business rates should be different across the country. It is not obvious to me that there is a good argument for that, but it is not obvious to me that there is a good argument for it being different across different sizes of business or sectors, either. I would not rule out that you could make a case for it. In those other cases in terms of smaller businesses and retail, hospitality and leisure, you can make a case for it. I am not saying that you should never have any variation, but I would want to hear that argument made clearly. In terms of variation across areas, I do not think I have heard that argument made.

[Jayne Kirkham]

Q I am from Cornwall, where we have full business rates retention, so that puts a slightly different spin on it. Given that that varies across the country, maybe you could mention that. You talked about high street rents going up or down. I come from a place where there are lots of seaside towns and limited space by the water. A lot of our properties are owned by faceless corporations or insurance funds, so the rents are not remotely responsive. They have stayed high for a long time because they are seen as an asset on a balance sheet. We have struggled very much with that. For some places—maybe you would disagree—the business rates are even more important because the rents either take a very long time to have an impact or we are just left with empty properties for a very long time. Would you agree?

Stuart Adam: I think I would disagree. Actually, it is possibly even more true in the cases where properties are owned by big, faceless corporations, because clearly they will want to set the highest rent they can get away with, but the amount of rent they can get away with will depend on the demand for that property, and the demand for the property depends on the level of business rates and rent attached to it.

You would expect rents to adjust in the long run. How long “the long run” is is an interesting question. There is some evidence that it starts to happen in a relatively short period—something like three or four years—but the evidence on that is not great. The rent adjustment probably happens more quickly than it would have 20 or 30 years ago, because commercial rent contracts have become shorter and there is more use of things like commercial voluntary arrangements, which allow rents to adjust more quickly. It can take a fair number of years before rents are renegotiated, contracts come to an end and so on, but I would still very much expect it to happen.

[Jim McMahon]

Q Is part of the tension not that the question described a broken market, but that response describes a functioning market? Is the real issue that many institutional investors would sooner have an empty property with a notional rent attached to it, even if the rent is never achieved, than accept a tenant for a lower rent that would have an impact on their overall balance sheet? Is there not a tension there?

Stuart Adam: Yes, I think that is right. There is an interesting question as to why so many properties are left empty for so long, when it would seem to be in the landlord’s interest to have anyone in there paying them something, rather than no one in there paying them anything. There are certainly aspects in which the market does not function well, but on the whole it still looks to me like a market where, basically, prices are determined by supply and demand, and such evidence as we have seems to support that.

Non-Domestic Rating (Multipliers and Private Schools) Bill (Second sitting)

Jayne Kirkham Excerpts

Committee stage
Wednesday 11th December 2024 Public Bill Committees

[The Chair]

If we speak closer to the mike, it will pick us up—the witness is not hearing.

[Jayne Kirkham (Truro and Falmouth) (Lab/Co-op)]

Q I am going to try again. You are talking about the EHCP and saying that this might impact on some of the children and parents with EHCPs. The Bill sets out that private schools that are wholly or mainly concerned with the provision of education for children with EHCPs will retain their relief. So do you think there will be much impact on those children? Do you think that will mean they would have to move schools, given that the measure is in there?

Dr James: If they are retaining their relief, hopefully they should not have to. It would be very detrimental for people with children with certain types of SENs to have to move schools—not just to the state sector: move schools full stop.

[The Chair]

Any more questions for Dr James? No. In that case, we can move on to our next witnesses. Thank you, Dr James.

Examination of Witnesses

Kate Nicholls OBE, Steve Alton and Sacha Lord gave evidence.

--- Later in debate ---

[Jim McMahon]

It is almost the opposite, really. Given the context that has been outlined, this is the respite that the industry has been calling for. If we can keep to the scope of the Bill, and what it provides for, that would be helpful.

[Jayne Kirkham]

Q I have a quick question. I am glad you are here, Mr Lord, because we were talking about the super tax and the £500,000 limit. I am from Cornwall, so I completely understand what you said about large hotels. Will other parts of the leisure sector, such as theme parks, the night time economy, music venues and theatres, be impacted by the super-rate?

Sacha Lord: Nightclubs will certainly be impacted. Obviously, a nightclub is a much larger space than a pub, so sadly they will suffer under this legislation.

[Jayne Kirkham]

Q What percentage are we talking about across the board—theatres, theme parks and so on, and hospitality? I think you said 7%, which is fairly low.

Kate Nicholls: If you look at hospitality venues, which would include nightclubs and the larger hotels—it would not include theme parks necessarily, but it would include campsites and holiday parks—you are looking at around 700 premises. Of those that pay business rates, that is around 1% of total businesses, but it accounts for 7% of employment and close to 11% of turnover, so they are quite big. They are a disproportionate proportion of our tourist infrastructure in terms of employment. In certain locations, they will be up to 20% of local employment, so it is quite significant.

My understanding is that the Bill could provide respite for them, because there is an opportunity to apply different rates of a super charge for different types of businesses. We can differentiate on business use above the £500,000 threshold. We urge the Government to do that, and will work with them as the Bill and the consultation go forward, to ensure that they take advantage of that, so that we do not treat a large distribution centre or fulfilment centre the same as a hotel or nightclub.

[Mrs Sureena Brackenridge (Wolverhampton North East) (Lab)]

Q My constituency of Wolverhampton North East does not have a city centre, but we have lots of cafés, brilliant restaurants, microbreweries and pub chains. What benefits will the Bill provide to those small businesses?

Kate Nicholls: If the deduction is applied to the maximum, it will result in a significant reduction in bills for all small hospitality businesses in suburban, neighbourhood and community locations such as your constituency, not just those subject to a cap and getting up to £100,000. Every single hospitality business in your constituency below £500,000—forgive me; I did not double-check, but I do not think you have any over that—will benefit from a permanent reduction in their business rates bills, which will help to redress the balance of their overall tax burden.

Sacha Lord: I would say that this really is a substantial lifeline for all those businesses. My concern is the period between April and when this legislation comes into force.

--- Later in debate ---

[Patrick Spencer]

Q Forgive me, Minister, but is this not a bit of a missed opportunity? The Committee has heard a lot of evidence today that, yes, the measures introduced in the Bill, specifically the ones around supporting local shops and our high streets, are probably very fair and reasonable, and that it is about time, but at the end of the day, business rates are not a progressive way to tax individuals and businesses. Taxing capital always allows for businesses that may seem asset-rich or that have asset liabilities to be taxed unfairly.

Why did the Government not go further in looking at alternatives, whether it be a sales tax or a land value tax? I am not a fan of land value taxes—they are another form of capital tax—but why did the Government not look at being more ambitious, instead of retaining a system that may be better in the future but still not ideal?

Jim McMahon: Which taxes are fair is always in the eye of the beholder. People have very different views about the fairness of different taxes in the system. In terms of property tax, I am here as the local tax Minister covering business rates and council tax. They are established taxes and they are understood. There are definitely views about whether they are up to date and fit for purpose, and whether they should be reformed, but however clunky the system is, very few people have an alternative that holds water, is fair, and produces the same level of income to support local public services.

There is always that balance to be struck. With business rates, you are getting a balance between the inherent value of a property, the rent that it can achieve, and the link to capital. We have heard that there are contradictions in some places where the economy is more suppressed, but it is not entirely intended to do that anyway; it is about reflecting the activity that takes place within a property as much as the bricks and mortar. On that basis, it is probably as good as you are going to get.

The question for the Government is how we build in a safety net for those uses that we want to maintain because they are positive for the local community and the economy, but that may be marginal commercially, which is exactly what the Bill is intended to do. But in a self-financing system, as the business rate system is, how do you then draw from other parts of the system in the fairest possible way? I think we have achieved that.

Why? Because a £500,000 rateable value is 1% of the business rate system, and it targets the warehouses and distribution centres for companies that are by and large doing well. Most retail, hospitality and leisure businesses on the high street, such as restaurants, fashion retailers and pubs, are saying, “We are only just keeping our head above water.” In a system that anybody would say is quite clunky, I think this Bill is as good as you will get for rebalancing it fairly, while being targeted enough to get the outcome that you want, which is thriving high streets and local communities who can begin to be proud of the places where they live because they are seeing activity, not windows boarded up and roller shutters pulled down.

[Jayne Kirkham]

Q This is just a point of clarification for me. It is probably really simple. On the larger rate, over £500,000, and the lower multiplier, one witness said that it could still apply to hospitality, retail and so on, so it could still be applied to big hotels and grassroots music venues even if they are over the level. Is that right?

Jim McMahon: At the moment, any property over £500,000 would be subject to the higher value. We are not looking at the moment at sectoral exemptions, but clearly we will take into account the evidence sessions and the discussions that will happen tomorrow. However, it would be fair to say that if you are a retailer with such a square footage that the value is over £500,000, you are likely to be a very big department store, a big out-of-town shed or a supermarket. The assumption in the system is that if you can afford to occupy and run a space of that size, there is room to pay additional business rates on that basis. In the end, it is about giving it to that ultimate use, which is the smaller retail, hospitality and leisure uses that are the backbone of many communities.

[Harriet Cross]

Q Going back to panel 7, we heard UKHospitality, the British Institute of Innkeeping and the night time economy adviser for Greater Manchester reflect on jobs and job losses due to changes. I appreciate that it is hard to establish at this stage whether those are because of national insurance or business rates, but either way business rates are a contributing factor. What analysis have the Government done as a background to the Bill to model the impact on jobs and job losses in the different sectors? What impact assessment has been done in relation to the different types of employment—full time, part time or seasonal? A lot of hospitality work helps people such as part-time working mothers because it comes at different times of day.

Jim McMahon: I think, within the scope of the Bill, which is very narrow, the impact is only a positive one. That is in the context of the temporary relief that was provided during the covid pandemic, which, being temporary, was coming to an end—the cliff edge was coming. There was absolutely no finance provided for it beyond the current year, so the question then is: what do Government do about it? We either grow even further the £22 billion funding gap that was here when we came into office—that is, we continue it—or we say that—

Council Tax

Jayne Kirkham Excerpts

Thursday 14th November 2024 Commons Chamber

[Matthew Pennycook]

No, that is not the case. We are maintaining the policy of the previous Government, which, as per the OBR forecast, estimated that £1.8 billion will be raised through council tax. The position of the Government is that it will maintain the thresholds. If the hon. Gentleman thinks differently, he should tell House what his position is on thresholds: should they be reduced or increased?

[Jayne Kirkham (Truro and Falmouth) (Lab/Co-op)]

I am pleased about the support for first and second-tier councils and the commitment to fair funding, which will make a real difference in, for instance, Cornwall. However, in unitary authorities such as ours, where a great many services have been shared, larger town councils have had to step up and take the strain, but have not had the grants and other measures that have been available to those first and second-tier councils. Could the appropriate Minister meet me to discuss the position of larger town councils in Cornwall?

[Matthew Pennycook]

I am more than happy to commit the Local Government Minister to a meeting with my hon. Friend.

Holiday and Second Homes Regulation: Cornwall and Isles of Scilly

Jayne Kirkham Excerpts

Wednesday 23rd October 2024 Westminster Hall

[Andrew George]

That is absolutely the case. As a visitor to the Isles of Scilly, my hon. Friend knows that that is a significant problem, because people cannot commute to the Isles of Scilly to work. It is difficult to commute to work for businesses providing those kinds of jobs in many of the coastal areas around Cornwall, and many people find themselves living in very informal settings, including caravans, because nothing else is available to them.

I will rapidly run through some of the regulations concerned: council tax; small business rate relief; the furnished holiday lettings scheme; holiday business registration, which the last Government proposed, and the planning use class changes. First, on council tax, going back to the pre-history where this all originated, when the Conservatives originally introduced the council tax system—what they called the community charge—they introduced a 50% council tax discount for second homes, because they said second home owners were not using all the services and therefore should not have to pay for them. That was the justification back in the 1990s.

[Jayne Kirkham (Truro and Falmouth) (Lab/Co-op)]

The hon. Member mentioned some of the solutions. Would it not be a good idea to consider giving a suite of powers to a local authority so they could pick and choose which of those would suit that local authority and those particular circumstances?

Employment Rights Bill

Jayne Kirkham Excerpts

2nd reading
Monday 21st October 2024 Commons Chamber

[Kevin Hollinrake (Thirsk and Malton) (Con)]

I beg to move an amendment, to leave out from “That” to the end of the Question and add:

“this House notes the balanced reforms made by previous Conservative governments to improve workers’ rights, including the National Living Wage, the prohibition of the use of exclusivity clauses or terms in zero hours contracts and the introduction of shared parental leave and pay, and declines to give a Second Reading to the Employment Rights Bill because it has been rushed into Parliament without full consultation to meet an arbitrary 100-day deadline and Monday 21 October 2024 Business Today: Chamber 19 has not been accompanied by an Impact Assessment considering the impact on the Employment Tribunal, especially as a result of the removal of the qualifying period for the right to claim unfair dismissal or the impact of the extra red tape on SMEs or the impact of establishing the Fair Work Agency; because the repeal of trade union laws will lead to more strikes and intimidation in the workplace, and will force taxpayers to foot the bill for inflation-busting pay hikes without public service reform; because the Bill undermines choice for workers about whether they want to fund political campaigning and forces firms and public bodies to bankroll more trade union facility time, including trade union diversity jobs; and because the Bill is contrary to the Government’s stated goals of improving productivity and economic growth and will increase costs for businesses and consumers.”

The Conservative party will always be the party of business, but we are pro-business and pro-worker, not least because many Conservative Members have been both workers and people who have started and grown their own businesses. Those who have done so are the first to appreciate the symbiotic relationship between the two. We acted during our time in office to improve workers’ rights in several areas: flexible working, parental leave, redundancy protections, ensuring that workers keep the tips left for them by their customers, and significant increases to the national living wage.

I started my first significant business back in 1992. Over three decades, we grew to become a national business employing hundreds of people. We valued every one of those people. We were one of The Sunday Times’s best 100 companies to work for and were certified by Investors in People. I believe that business is a force for good and that businesspeople do great service to our communities and the wider economy. As Winston Churchill put it, they are the strong horse that pulls the whole cart.

The question I now ask myself is whether I would start that small business again today if the Bill were in place. Sadly, the answer is probably no—certainly not a business that employed any people. The very high cost of these measures will be borne by all companies and passed on in the form of higher prices, reduced wages and lost jobs. The measures will fall most heavily on small businesses, for which they could be existential.

[Jayne Kirkham (Truro and Falmouth) (Lab/Co-op)]

Does the hon. Member remember 1997 and 1998, when the Conservative party said that the social chapter and the national minimum wage would cost half a million jobs? In the late 1990s, half a million jobs were actually created.

[Kevin Hollinrake]

I was not here at the time, but it is clear nevertheless that the minimum wage and the national living wage have had a positive effect on prosperity in this country, and I would be the first to admit it. I want the hon. Lady, and other Government Members, to understand that those measures fell equally on all businesses across the UK. The measures in this Bill fall disproportionately hard on small businesses.

What the right hon. Member for Ashton-under-Lyne (Angela Rayner) fails to understand is that the implication of these measures, such as a day one right to an employment tribunal, is that even a spurious case of unfair dismissal costs time and money. It is potentially tens of thousands of pounds to defend that case. As one business organisation put it, “You lose when you are accused.” Most small businesses saddled with such a cost would be sunk without trace. It is not just that, but the deterrent effect, which it would have had on me, and which will be felt right across the economy and by every existing and aspirant business person across this entire nation. When the Deputy Prime Minister reflects on what she is hearing from people who have actually run a business, will she at the very least consider exempting small and medium enterprises from this catastrophic Bill?

--- Later in debate ---

[Jayne Kirkham (Truro and Falmouth) (Lab/Co-op)]

As an MP from Cornwall, where we have seasonal workers aplenty, I should say that although the Bill talks about a suggested reference period of 12 weeks, after which average hours will be offered, employees do not have to accept that if they do not want to. They can choose to stay on zero-hours contracts.

We have a large demand for social care in Truro and Falmouth. Our population tends towards an older demographic. As many people leave friends and family to retire to Cornwall, the availability of care is especially important. Assistance for people who have disabilities, so that they can live independent lives and be supported into work if they choose that path, is crucial. Skilled care workers are chronically underpaid for what they do—they are often on the minimum wage—and good people leak out of the system, as it pays more to work in the local supermarket.

I worked as a teaching assistant at a local secondary school—I declare my interest in the register as a Unison member—and I was also an equity partner in a trade union law firm, so I have some experience of employing people, too. The pay for working in a school in a supporting role can also be very low—sometimes minimum wage. What the care and school sectors have in common, apart from poor rates of pay, is that, as others have said, they involve highly skilled jobs that are incredibly important for our society, and those who work in them are far more likely to be women. The Bill has many provisions that will help with sick pay and parental leave, and will give protection from unfair dismissal from day one. It also improves family-friendly rights, provides for flexible working, and has measures to tackle zero-hours and minimum-hours contracts. However, it also specifically gives respect and recognition to social care workers and school support staff through a fair pay agreement for adult social care, and by reinstating the school support staff negotiating body. This will be a game changer for those low-paid workers, mostly women, who work in care and in schools. It will mean that pay, terms and conditions for care workers and school support staff are negotiated nationally, and that a minimum is set across the country.

I am so pleased that the Government have chosen those two sectors as the first to have the opportunity for fair pay agreements. Women with caring responsibilities are often limited in the hours they can work. Historically, that has meant that, however skilled and important their jobs are, they have not been properly rewarded or looked after. Changing that will be transformational.

Truro and Falmouth has Cornwall’s only acute hospital and the seat of Cornwall unitary council within its boundaries. That means that we have a large number of people who work in the public sector. Many of those jobs have been contracted out, and the terms and conditions for those roles have been gradually eroded. This Bill enables Ministers to create a code to prevent the emergence of a two-tier workforce when outsourcing occurs. A new national procurement statement will make sure that the Government use their contracts to raise employment standards, not dilute them. This employment Bill is a huge step forward, and I am proud of it.

Renters’ Rights Bill

Jayne Kirkham Excerpts

Wednesday 9th October 2024 Commons Chamber

[Jayne Kirkham (Truro and Falmouth) (Lab/Co-op)]

Recent statistics show that 50% of the private rented sector in Cornwall does not meet the decent homes standard, way above the average of 21%. Less than 20% of homes in Cornwall were in the private rented sector four years ago, yet a quarter of our children and young people were living in those homes, including a third of our under-fives.

That has been evidenced by the noticeable uptick in recent years of section 21 evictions that affect families with young children. Cornwall now has more than 800 households in emergency or temporary accommodation, and many of them are young families who have struggled to find somewhere else to live because of the cost, their children or even their cats. Because of our geographical spread, many of those families have ended up in holiday parks, caravan sites or hotels up to an hour and a half’s drive from home. With poor rural transport links, this often leaves families completely cut off from jobs, schools and support networks.

In September 2020, Cornwall council’s economic growth committee published an inquiry into the private rented sector in Cornwall and recommended a number of measures to extend licensing powers. It also recommended data gathering on landlords and tenants in the private rented sector, Disclosure and Barring Service checks, longer terms and the limiting of annual rent increases. However, covid happened, further local government cuts affected officers’ capacity and the council changed to a Conservative administration that was wary of upsetting landlords following covid, so none of the recommendations was enacted.

Regardless of the council’s caution, the private rented sector has still been decimated in Cornwall, with many landlords selling up or flipping to lucrative short-term holiday lets. Prices have skyrocketed, and many people are struggling to find a home, which is why I am so pleased and relieved that the Government have prioritised this Bill. It will bring in many of the measures proposed by that Cornish report—at last, we will end no-fault evictions, introduce longer protected terms and limit annual rent rises. Awaab’s law will force landlords to follow strict timescales to inspect and repair homes, including those with damp and mould, and the decent homes standard will apply to the private rented sector for the first time, with local councils given the power to fine landlords who fail to address serious hazards.

Many people are shut out of the market if they have children or pets, or are on benefits. Changes to stop that happening will prevent the most vulnerable in my constituency remaining unhoused, and the heartache as people have to decide to give up treasured pets.

[Andrew Rosindell]

The hon. Lady is making some compelling points and mention pets. Does she remember the Dogs and Domestic Animals (Accommodation and Protection) Bill of 2020, which I put to the House all those years ago? I am glad that the measures in that Bill now being brought into legislation. Does she agree that this Bill needs to be extended further, so those in social housing, as well as those in freehold accommodation, can have a pet, so everyone can have a pet at home, and not lose their home because they love and care about their cherished animal?

[Jayne Kirkham]

I was not here when the hon. Gentleman introduced his previous Bill, but I am sure the Minister has considered the importance of pets to people living in all types of housing.

The court system and local authorities will need extra capacity to deal with the extra work created by the legislation. I was pleased to hear the announcements about digitisation and the ombudsman. The proposed changes will support the security of privately renting families in Truro, Falmouth and across Cornwall. As I have said, many people in Cornwall have been evicted from their rented homes with two months’ notice, so they can be used as short-term or holiday lets. We know that Cornwall council is the local authority with the largest supply of short-term lets outside London.

There are 24,300 holiday let properties in Cornwall, up 30% on 2019. Statistics from the council tax base tell us that over 13,000 second homes are registered in Cornwall, which is nearly 5% of the total housing stock and five times higher than the average across England. There are also 27,000 families on the waiting list for social housing, but Cornwall has only 10,000 council houses and 22,000 housing association homes.

I am pleased that the Minister is considering a toolbox of measures that could be made available to local authorities to discourage the further depletion of the private rented sector and full-time residential housing in Cornwall, such as the higher council tax that is coming in, licensing and registration, planning restrictions and closing the business rates council tax loophole.

In conclusion, I very much welcome the Bill. It provides many benefits for the people in Truro and Falmouth who rely on the private rented sector for their home, and certainty for the landlords who provide those homes.