Financial Services
Debate between Julian Smith and Greg Clark(11 years, 11 months ago)
Commons ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
Greg Clark
I am not aware of those allegations but I will look into them. Any criminal activity in any part of the financial services industry ought to be prosecuted and pursued with the same degree of vigour as in any other walk of life. The hon. Gentleman overstates the case in his reflection of the City. Hundreds of thousands of people work in the City and do a decent job working hard for their clients and businesses up and down the country. They are as outraged as any of us in this House about the damage done to the City’s reputation. The future for us and for our interests is to see that reputation restored and root out the corrupt individuals—corrupt is the word in this case—who have done disproportionate damage to the reputation of a set of institutions that should be one of the prides of this country.
Julian Smith (Skipton and Ripon) (Con)
In the light of the report, I urge the Minister, and my hon. Friend the Member for Chichester (Mr Tyrie) and his commission, to look carefully at the Securities and Exchange Commission’s highly successful whistleblower incentive scheme, which gives whistleblowers a cut of fines, and at how we begin to replicate that model.
Greg Clark
The discount in fines given for co-operation is one reason for organisations to co-operate, but I will look at my hon. Friend’s point on individuals.
Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Julian Smith and Greg Clark
Julian Smith (Skipton and Ripon) (Con)
T5. Communities across north Yorkshire are being hassled, bullied and, in some cases, bribed by wind developers that are carrying out scoping exercises. Following the question from my hon. Friend the Member for Selby and Ainsty (Nigel Adams), will the Minister confirm that the revised national planning policy framework will give communities, such as those in north Yorkshire, the absolute final say on where wind farms should be situated?
The Minister of State, Department for Communities and Local Government (Greg Clark)
The problem at the moment is that there is imposition from the regional strategies. We are getting rid of that. We take the view that if communities are involved in decisions, there can be a far better outcome than if planning decisions descend on them from above.
Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Julian Smith and Greg Clark
Julian Smith (Skipton and Ripon) (Con)
15. What steps his Department is taking to ensure the efficient approval of applications to the European regional development fund.
The Minister of State, Department for Communities and Local Government (Greg Clark)
The Government have improved the management of the ERDF. We have already saved the taxpayer £100 million on the last programme, and two thirds of the way through the current programme, two thirds of the funds have been allocated.
Julian Smith
I thank the Secretary of State for using his weight to sort out the recent problems involving broadband and ERDF funding. Will he confirm that the North Yorkshire project and pilot can proceed to the next stage of the ERDF funding application?
Greg Clark
The Secretary of State has indeed been helping in the negotiations with the European Commission to ensure that there is more flexibility on broadband projects, which is absolutely right. I understand that Connecting North Yorkshire will proceed with those plans forthwith.
Core Cities
Debate between Julian Smith and Greg Clark(13 years, 1 month ago)
Commons ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text
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Greg Clark
I commend the work of the hon. Gentleman and his Committee. He is right that we want to improve the standing of local government and its ability to be recognised as having—in effect—a constitutional significance that cannot simply be brushed aside. As he will know, our reforms in the Localism Act 2011 move considerably in that direction to establish a general power of competence for local government, so that it no longer exists to do those things that it is told to do by Parliament and central Government. Instead, the default should be the other way around: councils should be able to do things unless they are explicitly prevented from doing them by Parliament. The Act is a huge step in that direction, but I look forward to the report from the hon. Gentleman’s Committee—it will be taken very seriously in the Government.
Julian Smith (Skipton and Ripon) (Con)
This is a great opportunity for northern cities such as Leeds to seize back control from London. Does the Minister agree that Leeds is doing the right thing by attracting inward investment, sovereign wealth funds and other sources of capital, and not relying on money from Whitehall?
Greg Clark
My hon. Friend is absolutely right. One of the things that was suppressed under the old regional arrangements was the identity of cities internationally, and one of the proposals that we make in the document is that UK Trade & Investment should work even more closely with cities to promote the identity of cities such as Liverpool, which is world renowned and should be given particular prominence in UKTI’s work around the world.
Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Julian Smith and Greg Clark(14 years, 2 months ago)
Commons ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text
Greg Clark
The Leader of the Opposition has said that the previous Government looked down their noses at local government. Nowhere was that more true than in the case of parish councils. The charge of parochialism needs to be turned round and we need to regard an interest in locality through parishes as a positive measure. The localism Bill will allow parishes, as neighbourhoods, to set their own plans, to have them adopted and to give effect to them in the planning system.
Julian Smith
May I ask my right hon. Friend to go a bit further on the role of parish councils? Skipton and Ripon is packed with hundreds of excellent parish councils and they are asking me what specific role they have in relation to district councils. Will he go into a bit more detail on that?
Greg Clark
The planning provisions in the localism Bill will allow every neighbourhood in the country, including parishes, to set its own local neighbourhood plan. That will mean that they can design the look and feel of their neighbourhoods going forward into the future and in so doing take away the bureaucracy that is involved in taking planning applications through the development control process. If we capture it in the plan, we will not have that bureaucracy and uncertainty.
Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Julian Smith and Greg Clark
Julian Smith (Skipton and Ripon) (Con)
T4. Many of my constituents continue to be concerned that despite the exciting moves to localise planning decisions, developers and councils still will not listen to them. What reassurance can Ministers give to local communities that they are really back in the driving seat?
Greg Clark
They are back in the driving seat. Everything that is needed to make plans that respond to local communities is in place. The process will be buttressed by strong financial incentives. I would expect that councils such as those in my hon. Friend’s area will want to take up these powers in the interests of his constituents.