UK Infrastructure Bank Bill [ Lords ] (Second sitting) Debate
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Katherine Fletcher
Main Page: Katherine Fletcher (Conservative - South Ribble)Department Debates - View all Katherine Fletcher's debates with the HM Treasury
UK Infrastructure Bank Bill [ Lords ] (Second sitting)
Katherine Fletcher ExcerptsTuesday 22nd November 2022
(2 years, 1 month ago)
Public Bill CommitteesRead Full debate UK Infrastructure Bank Act 2023 View all UK Infrastructure Bank Act 2023 Debates Read Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts Amendment Paper: Public Bill Committee Amendments as at 22 November 2022 - (22 Nov 2022)
The Chair
Order. It might help if, when the Minister sends a reply to the shadow Minister, he sends it to the whole Committee.
Katherine Fletcher
It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Bone—for the first time, I believe.
Recently, I was briefly the incumbent of the roads portfolio, which is obviously an important part of infrastructure. The average time from scheme idea to spades in the ground actually exceeds the seven years that is provided for in the Bill. While I am extremely sympathetic to the points made by my hon. Friend the Member for North East Bedfordshire about ensuring that we do not go too long without checking, I am also sympathetic to the idea that we need to be able to operationalise the schemes. Does the Minister agree that the key to getting the seven years down is the reform of planning legislation? We cannot guarantee an investment until the development consent orders are cleared.