Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Mary Robinson and Amber Rudd(5 years, 9 months ago)
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Amber Rudd
I ask the hon. Gentleman to engage with the change that is universal credit. People were left to languish on previous legacy benefits, and were not helped into work at all. We now have a system where the money is focused on trying to help people into work. That is why we have seen the changes with the work allowance, and why we have seen additional support from the Chancellor. It is a different system from that point of view.
Mary Robinson (Cheadle) (Con)
Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Mary Robinson and Amber Rudd(5 years, 10 months ago)
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Amber Rudd
I understand the hon. Gentleman’s approach to this, but I must remind him of the terrible financial inheritance that we took on, which required belt-tightening, from which we are now getting some of the benefit. I also point out to him that now wages are rising faster than inflation, this is a significant change for people in receipt of it.
Mary Robinson (Cheadle) (Con)
A constituent of mine, who suffers from paranoid schizophrenia, works part time in a catering assistant role, which she began as a volunteer. However, last April, she was informed that the entire year of ESA would be reclaimed due to a mistake in the reporting of her hours and salary. Does my right hon. Friend agree that claimants can often be vulnerable to errors, and would she agree to meet me to discuss this very difficult case?
Amber Rudd
Of course, I will meet my hon. Friend to ensure that the right decisions have been made, but I would point out that she has drawn attention to one of the benefits of universal credit: a monthly assessment allows a much more accurate payment to be made to individual applicants.
Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Mary Robinson and Amber Rudd(6 years, 8 months ago)
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The Secretary of State for the Home Department (Amber Rudd)
This Government firmly support collaboration between emergency services and have invested more than £88 million in projects to support that since 2013. The Policing and Crime Act 2017 introduced a host of measures to enable collaboration to go further and faster, which include a statutory duty to collaborate and allow elected police and crime commissioners to take on fire and rescue governance.
Mary Robinson
I welcome the recent Government investment of £24 million, following the Manchester bombing last May. The package includes almost £10 million to cover the cost of extra staffing and other pressures on Greater Manchester police. Does my right hon. Friend agree that there is much we can learn from the response to the Manchester Arena terrorist atrocity and that we should continue to work to try to improve further how our excellent emergency services respond to such tragic events?
Amber Rudd
I thank my hon. Friend for her question. Of course, the important report highlights the acts of bravery and compassion that took place on the night of 22 May and in the following days. As Lord Kerslake noted, the response was “overwhelmingly positive”, but the report also shows a need for improvement in some areas. As she points out, it makes certain recommendations, which I know the local emergency services and the Home Office will follow up.
Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Mary Robinson and Amber Rudd
Mary Robinson (Cheadle) (Con)
11. What steps she has taken to ensure that the renewable heat incentive is cost effective.
The Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change (Amber Rudd)
The renewable heat incentive is the world’s first long-term financial support programme for renewable heat, and is central to our efforts to deliver renewable energy to consumers and businesses across the UK. In March this year, my Department launched a consultation on measures for the RHI. As is the case for everything my Department is doing, a central aim of this reform is to ensure that the scheme offers value for money and allows us to make the transition to cleaner heating technologies in a manner that is affordable for the UK.
Mary Robinson
I fully recognise the importance of supporting the biomass industry, but what assurances can the Minister give me and small businesses, medium-sized biomass firms and their local suppliers in my constituency?
Amber Rudd
I can assure my hon. Friend that the Government are providing support for small and medium-sized biomass companies through a range of incentives, including the renewables obligation, the feed-in tariff and the renewable heat incentive. We expect biomass to play an important role in industrial processes and district heating, where there are fewer alternatives for low-carbon technologies, and we want to ensure that we bring forward deployment in these areas.