Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Lindsay Hoyle and George Freeman

Thursday 25th January 2024 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

I call George Freeman.

[George Freeman (Mid Norfolk) (Con)]

May I take this opportunity to congratulate and thank the Secretary of State—[Interruption.] Sorry, Question 2.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Lindsay Hoyle and George Freeman

Wednesday 14th June 2023 Commons Chamber

[George Freeman]

I am afraid that the hon. Gentleman could not be more wrong; it is quite the opposite. The truth is that the Oxford-Cambridge-London triangle is golden for a reason: it is home to two of the world’s top three universities and five of top 15. Our central mission is to ensure that we grow an R&D economy all around the country that nurtures and invests in research, including a fantastic cluster in Yorkshire: the Yorkshire bioeconomy, advanced manufacturing in Sheffield, and Doncaster. We are investing in all that, but one does not create the Oxford-Cambridge triangle overnight; it requires us to invest with local leaders, as they are doing across the north-east in County Durham and Northumbria, in the innovative companies of tomorrow. This is a historic moment for the former coalfields.

[Mr Speaker]

I call the Scottish National party spokesperson.

--- Later in debate ---

[George Freeman]

My right hon. and learned Friend makes an important point. One of the attractions of Horizon is that we get back most of what we put in, and it funds research collaborations across our system, but the negotiations are important. We have been out of the system for two years; we need to get a fair deal, as the Prime Minister has made clear, and to make sure that the UK is not paying for stuff that it has not been able to access over the past two and a half years. I am sure that His Majesty’s Treasury is well equipped to have that negotiation on our behalf.

[Mr Speaker]

I call the shadow Minister.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Lindsay Hoyle and George Freeman

Wednesday 3rd May 2023 Commons Chamber

[George Freeman]

Yes, I absolutely agree. That is why we have put £1.9 billion into the Catapult network—our network for deep industrial collaboration with our universities. In the north-east, we have the offshore renewables Catapult in Blyth, the digital Catapult in Sunderland and the satellite applications Catapult in Durham. This is a deep investment in the north-east economy of tomorrow.

[Mr Speaker]

We now come to the Scottish National party spokesperson.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Lindsay Hoyle and George Freeman

Wednesday 15th March 2023 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

Order. The right hon. Lady, as much as she might be a science geek, ought to know that questions need to be shorter to give somebody else a chance. Put in for an urgent question. Come on in, Minister.

[George Freeman]

I pay tribute to Teledyne, which is a great company. That is why we have put £1.8 billion through the European Space Agency, so that little companies like that here in the UK can benefit. On Friday, I visited Space East. We support the cluster it is a part of. Following the Northern Ireland protocol agreement, the Windsor framework, we are actively discussing with the EU the membership of Horizon, Copernicus and Euratom, and funding earth observation programmes in any case.

--- Later in debate ---

[George Freeman]

That is an excellent question. We have set out the shared prosperity fund, which is now fully deployed around the country. We have made the commitment to increase domestic research and development outside the greater south-east by 40% between now and 2030, and 50% of Government R&D in the old Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy was outside the greater south-east. I do not want to pre-empt the Chancellor, but this afternoon there will be announcements about how we support regional science and technology growth.

[Mr Speaker]

How would you know that?

[Michael Fabricant (Lichfield) (Con)]

Nissan in Sunderland is one of the most productive plants in the whole Nissan network. What meetings has the Minister had with Nissan about its work?

[George Freeman]

Since arriving in this new portfolio I have not had any meetings with Nissan, but as a Department we are actively picking up the clean tech piece and the future energy technologies piece, and we are working with a range of companies, as well as with the Department for Business and Trade and the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero.

[Mr Speaker]

I call the shadow Minister.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Lindsay Hoyle and George Freeman

Tuesday 29th November 2022 Commons Chamber

[George Freeman]

The hon. Member is absolutely right that we are committed to growing that supply chain for the gigafactory revolution in the north-east, the midlands and all around the country. That is why we set out, in our critical minerals strategy, a coherent plan for making sure that the country has the whole supply chain, as well as those factories. I know that the Minister with responsibility for energy technology will be happy to talk to the hon. Member to make sure that the supply chain is working locally as well.

[Mr Speaker]

I call the shadow Minister.

Transport

Debate between Lindsay Hoyle and George Freeman

Monday 10th February 2020 Ministerial Corrections

[Mr Speaker]

Order. I call the Minister.

[George Freeman]

As the new Minister for the decarbonisation of transport, I can say that the Government are absolutely committed to this, and we have a cycling Prime Minister who is committed to it. We have announced £350 million for cycling infrastructure. As I have said, we are completely committed over this Parliament to doubling the number of people cycling and walking.

[Official Report, 30 January 2020, Vol. 670, c. 917.]

Letter from George Freeman:

Errors have been identified in my responses to the hon. Member for Enfield North (Feryal Clark).

The correct responses should have been:

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Lindsay Hoyle and George Freeman

Thursday 30th January 2020 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

May I advise Members that their questions should be linked to the main question? If a certain area is specified, your questions are meant to be about that area. You cannot just have a free for all. Minister, if you can pick something out of that, please do so.

[George Freeman]

At a stretch, Mr Speaker, I think that Buckinghamshire touches the east-west corridor. I would be delighted to meet my hon. Friend to look at a place-based solution for sustainable housing and transport.

--- Later in debate ---

[Mr Speaker]

Order. I call the Minister.

[George Freeman]

As the new Minister for the decarbonisation of transport, I can say that the Government are absolutely committed to this, and we have a cycling Prime Minister who is committed to it. We have announced £350 million for cycling infrastructure. As I have said, we are completely committed over this Parliament to doubling the number of people cycling and walking.[Official Report, 10 February 2020, Vol. 671, c. 8MC.]