John Milne
Main Page: John Milne (Liberal Democrat - Horsham)Department Debates - View all John Milne's debates with the HM Treasury
(3 days, 8 hours ago)
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Rachel Reeves
My hon. Friend is one of many MPs who has spoken to me about the need to reform the Green Book. I thank him for feeding in his concerns about the ways in which the Treasury has previously looked at requests for investment. I am pleased for the people of Rossendale and Darwen that we can start making a difference to the communities that were forgotten about for 14 years under the Conservatives. I was also very pleased to be in his constituency at the end of last year to open the 100th banking hub on a local high street.
John Milne (Horsham) (LD)
I welcome the Government’s decision to widen access to free school meals—a long-standing Liberal Democrat policy—but Castlewood primary school in my constituency tells me that it is currently losing 56p for every single meal it provides. Will the Chancellor undertake to fully fund school meals, or else is she asking schools to choose between teaching and eating?
Rachel Reeves
I am really pleased that what we have set out today will lift 100,000 children out of poverty by providing free school meals to an additional 500,000 children. Real-terms funding for schools is increasing and real-terms funding per pupil is increasing to ensure that schools are able to provide the free school meals and the teaching that our children need.