Replacement of the Chancellor of the Exchequer

Matt Western Excerpts

Monday 17th October 2022 Commons Chamber

[Penny Mordaunt]

There are serious questions that we as a Parliament should be examining today. I hope we will soon move on to the Chancellor’s statement, because that is what our constituents are concerned and worried about—not events within the Westminster bubble.

[Matt Western (Warwick and Leamington) (Lab)]

Obviously, it is a legitimate question that has been put forward today. The public want to know why the Prime Minister sacked her Chancellor after just 38 days—and particularly, given that she was co-architect of the economic plans, why she has not resigned.

[Penny Mordaunt]

Later this week we will have Prime Minister’s questions, and hon. Members have an opportunity every week to put questions to the Prime Minister.

Business of the House

Matt Western Excerpts

Thursday 31st March 2022 Commons Chamber

[Mark Spencer]

If the hon. Lady writes to me with the specific details about her constituent, I will make sure—[Interruption.] She says from a sedentary position that she already has. I will make sure that she gets a rapid response. I understand the stress that people undergo when they are concerned about whether they will get their pension, which they have rightly paid into. I will make sure that she gets a speedy answer.

[Matt Western (Warwick and Leamington) (Lab)]

Will the Leader of the House grant time for us to have a debate about the delivery of not only housing but infrastructure, and the timeliness of that delivery? I am sure that in his constituency, as in the constituencies of Members from across the House—we heard about this from the hon. Member for Keighley (Robbie Moore)—there is a real problem in this area. In my constituency, we were promised sustainable communities, but what we have is housing with no pedestrian access or egress off estates, no buses serving those estates, insufficient spaces at the local GPs and no spaces in our schools. So will the Leader of the House grant us time for a very welcome debate on this issue?

[Mark Spencer]

I am sure that such a debate would be a popular one. I am aware that a Westminster Hall debate was held earlier this week—I believe it was on Tuesday—about the provision of GP services connected to new developments. Local authorities have a huge responsibility to make sure that when they grant planning permission for new housing developments the infrastructure is put in place. Not only must there be doctors’ surgeries and dentists, but they must make sure that the schools and road networks are adequate to provide support to those new housing developments. I encourage the hon. Gentleman to apply for either a Backbench Business debate or an Adjournment debate, where he can continue to highlight those challenges.

Business of the House

Matt Western Excerpts

Thursday 24th March 2022 Commons Chamber

[Mark Spencer]

I understand the devastation that flood damage can cause. The Flood and Water Management Act 2010 gave local flood authorities lead responsibility to manage surface water run-off, groundwater and flooding from ordinary watercourses, and provided them with additional funding to undertake those duties. At local level, lead local flood authorities work in partnership with other relevant organisations, such as highways authorities and water companies, to effectively manage and, where possible, mitigate the impacts of local flooding through the development of a local flood risk management strategy. We have Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs questions on 28 April. I encourage my hon. Friend to be present and to make sure that the Secretary of State hears her concerns for the people of Cropwell Bishop.

[Matt Western (Warwick and Leamington) (Lab)]

For the third time in the last nine months, the trams operated by West Midlands Metro have been suspended, this time indefinitely. Tens of thousands of people across the region depend on those trams, including my constituents who commute to Birmingham and beyond. It seems there have been issues with the quality of the trams purchased, and there is also a colossal cost. Can we have a debate about the situation, including the role of the West Midlands Combined Authority?

[Mark Spencer]

I am aware of the challenges that the tram system in the west midlands has faced. I will draw the issue to the attention of the Secretary of State for Transport on the hon. Gentleman’s behalf and will make sure he gets an answer in due course.

Business of the House

Matt Western Excerpts

Thursday 17th March 2022 Commons Chamber

[Mark Spencer]

My hon. Friend is a tenacious campaigner on behalf of his constituents. This is not the first time he has drawn attention to the shortcomings of Mayor Burnham, and I know he will continue to do so by campaigning tirelessly for his constituents. He demonstrates once again today what a great representative he is for his constituents.

[Matt Western (Warwick and Leamington) (Lab)]

I am sure the Leader of the House will be tempted to consider an electric tractor or a hydrogen combine harvester, if he has not done do so already. Consumers across the UK have been switching to electric vehicles. Impressively, plug-ins were 26% of the February car market, and that proportion is growing. However, the charging infrastructure sector and the automotive manufacturers are frustrated by the lack of an integrated strategy. Can we have a debate in Government time on how the Government will ensure these two industries do not stall?

[Mark Spencer]

I have been lucky enough to buy an electric car, which has been a revelation. It is a very good product. The hon. Gentleman is right to draw attention to the fact that not only cars will have to migrate to a new fuel source in the long term. The good news is that in his part of the world, which is the heart of the car industry, great companies such as JCB are doing a lot of research into hydrogen fuel cells and gigafactories, into which the Government are pouring huge amounts of investment to make sure the United Kingdom is at the heart of the new revolution in energy supply. That is the right thing to do, and the Government are very committed to doing it.

Business of the House

Matt Western Excerpts

Thursday 27th January 2022 Commons Chamber

[Mr Rees-Mogg]

It would be wrong of me to pre-empt Second Reading in the House of Lords. The Bill has obviously completed its passage in this House in time to pass through the Lords in the course of a normal Session. Obviously, any amendments made in the House of Lords will come back to this House for confirmation when we get to the Lords amendments stages, which is the routine way in which Bills pass. I reassure the hon. Lady that the House will have a chance to discuss those matters when they come back and that any amendments will be announced in the normal way.

[Matt Western (Warwick and Leamington) (Lab)]

Monday will be a very sad day with the funeral of our dear friend Jack. He was a great champion for the people of Erdington but also, if I may say, for the manufacturing sector and the car industry in particular. He had GKN—now Melrose—in his constituency, and of course Jaguar Land Rover. Today’s report from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders shows that last year there was a 34% reduction in production compared with 2019, which is significantly worse than in European competitor nations. I am sure that Jack would ask this question, were he here. Can we have a debate in Government time on the Government’s mismanagement of the pandemic and its impact on our economy?

[Mr Rees-Mogg]

Mr Speaker, if I may, I think it is fair to say that there will be tributes to Jack Dromey on Wednesday, when I know that many Members from all sides of the House will want to pay a tribute to him.

On the economy, I think the hon. Gentleman is simply wrong. The policy adopted during the pandemic has saved the UK economy—that is why it has already got back to its pre-pandemic level. The £400 billion of taxpayer support for individuals and industry meant that people did not lose their jobs and that businesses survived the pandemic. If we had not provided what was probably the greatest level of support of any country in the world, we would have reduced the supply available when the economy came back, and that would have been inflationary. It would also have had the effect of putting many tens or hundreds of thousands—possibly even millions—into unemployment; in fact, we have the lowest youth unemployment on record. I think the attack on economic management is simply misplaced and that my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister and the Government got the big decisions right. That has been so fundamentally important during the whole of the covid pandemic.

Business of the House

Matt Western Excerpts

Thursday 6th January 2022 Commons Chamber

[Mr Rees-Mogg]

I am afraid I have never been very good at learning languages—even English I only just about manage to get by with. [Interruption.] No, I am afraid my Latin is absolutely hopeless. I therefore think that my new year’s resolution, in support of my hon. Friend, should be to campaign more in Westminster for the local elections that are coming up in May, because the council that she used to lead with such distinction is one of the great Conservative councils in the country. It keeps the council tax down; it keeps good services running; it is a model of its kind. We even managed to hold it in 1990, and I can assure her that I have forgiven the council for the 20 mph speed limits.

[Matt Western (Warwick and Leamington) (Lab)]

May I ask the Leader of the House for a debate on the merger of councils and local democracy? I am sure he would be concerned if there was suddenly an announcement that Somerset and Bristol were to merge. In Warwickshire, the Conservative-controlled county council is arguing for a unitary authority. Meanwhile, we have Stratford-on-Avon and Warwick District Councils voting to merge themselves, albeit without any public vote. Surely we should be putting these sorts of decisions to the people, as I am sure my example earlier would have demonstrated to him.

[Mr Rees-Mogg]

The hon. Gentleman knows my weaknesses only too well, because this dreadful idea was tried with the county of Avon, which was abolished, I am glad to say, to general rejoicing in 1996. They have sort of half-tried it again with the west of England combined authority, which had no support beyond bureaucrats in my area—none of the people of North East Somerset wanted it—so I have a great deal of sympathy with what he is asking for. However, any change in council status usually requires a statutory instrument; therefore, there are ways of ensuring that it is discussed.

Strengthening Standards in Public Life

Matt Western Excerpts

Wednesday 17th November 2021 Commons Chamber

[Matt Western (Warwick and Leamington) (Lab)]

As we all sit here today, it is worth reminding ourselves who it is that we serve. For me, it is absolutely, 100%, the constituents of Warwick and Leamington, Whitnash and villages. It is to them I owe my position as a Member of this House. I am their advocate, paid as such, and I am proud to be so, but I will never take money from anyone to be their advocate or to represent them. We are all the servants of our constituents. By putting our names forward for election, we have all committed ourselves to the principle of public life. I appreciate that the concept of public life is often so abstract that its meaning can occasionally be lost in the heated discourse of politics. For that reason, the Nolan principles, established in 1995, serve as a fundamental, concrete basis for everything that we do. Selflessness, integrity, objectivity, accountability, openness, honesty and leadership were and should be our guiding principles. Put simply,

“we need all in positions of trust to set an example.”

Those are not my words, but the words of every living Cabinet Secretary, in a joint letter published in The Times on Monday.

It is therefore with a heavy heart that I consider the actions of some Members of this House in the past 14 days that run counter to the very foundations of public service, with the most egregious case being Owen Paterson and his blatant prioritisation of private, corporate interests over and above those of his constituents, for his own gain. Owen Paterson’s actions grate against every single one of the Nolan principles. His pay cheque from Randox and Lynn’s, at almost three times his MP’s salary, reeks of selfishness, dishonesty and private interest. It is not just the constituents of North Shropshire who are short-changed, but every Member of this House. While the vast majority of us work tirelessly to represent the interests of our constituents, a small but notable minority continue to damage the reputation of this place.

What makes the incident particularly sorrowful is that by seeking to pause the independent Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards’ recommendation of suspension and undermining her independence, the Government complicitly advanced private interests over and above public interests. If the Leader of the House or the Prime Minister are in any way confused about the scale of outrage levelled against their Government in the past 14 days, I suggest to them that it is for that reason. If there is one thing the electorate wants, it is good, honest, reputable government—the antithesis of what we have seen in the past 14 days—and if the Government do not, they should move over.

If anyone was ever in doubt about the need for rigorous standards in public life, this affair has demonstrated why we need them more than ever. I have deep concerns that this incident is just the tip of the iceberg. Over the past two weeks, a flurry of reports has emerged about numerous Members of this House engaging in a variety of forms of paid consultancy. One Conservative Member is reported to have called for weakened environmental laws while earning £30,000 a year as chairman of a packaging lobby group. Another has called for more military spending without declaring his £425-an-hour job with an aerospace company. Meanwhile, the hon. Member for Tewkesbury (Mr Robertson) is reportedly paid £200 an hour by the betting industry while seeking to warn Ministers not to introduce tough new laws on gambling.

[Mr Deputy Speaker (Mr Nigel Evans)]

Order. Has the hon. Member written to the Members he is now mentioning?

[Matt Western]

Indeed I have, absolutely—to all of them.

[Mr Deputy Speaker]

I will take your word for that.

[Matt Western]

They say that a fish rots from the head down; is it any wonder, then, that so many Conservative MPs are happy to rake in thousands from private companies, given that as soon as the Prime Minister resigned as Foreign Secretary in 2018, he immediately retook his position at The Daily Telegraph at the staggering rate of £275,000 a year for one weekly column? That is as much per word as someone would receive on a minimum wage. The right hon. Member for Bromsgrove (Sajid Javid) earned £320,000 in one year working for J. P. Morgan and C3 AI. Let us reflect on that for a moment now that he is the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care: in that period he earned the equivalent of 13 years’ income for an average nurse.

I could not afford to take another job—I already work 70 to 80 hours a week, like many others, I am sure—and nor would I. Time and again this Government have tried to sweep their corruption under the carpet, but this time they have failed. The public are waking up to the fact that this Government’s interests lie with corporate companies and corrupt donors. That is why I speak in full support of the motion tabled by the Leader of the Opposition, which would ban paid consultancy work

“to provide services as a Parliamentary strategist, adviser or consultant”.

It is a step in the right direction—towards cleaning up the mess that has dogged this House’s reputation in the past two weeks.

Business of the House

Matt Western Excerpts

Thursday 13th May 2021 Commons Chamber

[Mr Rees-Mogg]

I am very grateful to my hon. Friend for his question because I think all of us as constituency MPs deal with this issue. Some social landlords, such as Curo, are very good and responsive. Others, and I have found in my experience the Guinness trust, are very much less responsive in helping. Social landlords are required by the Regulator of Social Housing to work in partnership with other agencies to prevent and tackle antisocial behaviour in the neighbourhoods where they own homes. The Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 provides the police, local authorities and other local agencies with a range of tools and powers that they can use to respond quickly and effectively to antisocial behaviour, and these include civil injunctions that can impose restrictions or positive requirements on individuals whose behaviour is causing or is likely to cause harassment, alarm or distress.

My hon. Friend is right to raise this in the Chamber of the House, because sometimes the best way to get action is by putting pressure on, as the Member of Parliament, to get the various agencies to work together.

[Matt Western (Warwick and Leamington) (Lab) [V]]

The planning Bill announced in the Queen’s Speech will ring loud alarm bells for many residents in my constituency of Warwick and Leamington, not least those in Sydenham, Whitnash and Bishop’s Tachbrook, given that it would allow applications to automatically gain approval in certain areas, stripping residents of their right to have a say. For those in Sydenham, the news this week that the council planning committee has recommended approval of the application for 500 homes in east Whitnash will come as a shock, given that it was turned down previously and that the planning inspector recommended that it should not be built due to the limited capacity of the Sydenham road network. The site is, after all, a cul-de-sac at the end of a cul-de-sac on a cul-de-sac on a cul-de-sac; the roads cannot cope. Will the Leader of the House grant me a debate on the proposed development, which is totally unnecessary, as concluded by independent Office for National Statistics data?

[Mr Rees-Mogg]

The hon. Gentleman’s constituency issue is ideally suited for an Adjournment debate, but the planning Bill is essential. Her Majesty’s Government believe in helping people to own their own home. This is about home ownership and having a planning system that actually makes it easier for people to own their own homes and to build the houses that people need—something that we have been failing to do over many years, based on a system established in the late 1940s that thought that central Government always knew best. Central Government do not always know best. There is a significant demand out there. The supply needs to meet that demand, and we need to strengthen and reinvigorate our home-owning democracy.

Business of the House

Matt Western Excerpts

Thursday 17th December 2020 Commons Chamber

[Mr Rees-Mogg]

First, I congratulate my hon. Friend on his excellent first year in the House and on putting his constituency on the map—it took a Conservative Member to put it on the map. I welcome the Government’s commitments to Stoke; it is clear that we are delivering on the promises made to its voters, and we will continue to do so throughout this Parliament. My hon. Friend raises a crucial point: the 2019 manifesto is the foundation of this Government. It is a bond with our voters and it is incumbent on all Ministers to make sure that is honoured—and we are doing so. From the towns fund to the thousands of new police officers and nurses, a landmark new immigration system, safeguarding the United Kingdom’s internal market and, of course, delivering Brexit, we are keeping and will continue to keep our promises as we level up and improve the opportunities for everyone across this country.

[Matt Western (Warwick and Leamington) (Lab)]

Despite its being the largest infrastructure project in Europe, we seem to lack any debate on the HS2 programme. That is despite it costing a huge amount of public money and despite the fact that the pandemic has changed the way that people will be using rail in the future. The only debate on the matter seems to be in the other place. Earlier this week, a report from the independent National Infrastructure Commission, chaired by Lord Armitt, provided an assessment of rail needs for the midlands and the north. It emphasised greater investment in the north specifically and in regional lines. Given the rumours that the eastern leg of HS2 has been cancelled as part of the HS2 project, can we have an urgent debate about the future and viability of the project?

[Mr Rees-Mogg]

The HS2 Bill is in their lordships’ House, so, understandably, that is why the Lords are paying particular attention to it. The hon. Gentleman is absolutely right to ask for a debate on such an important infrastructure project. It is an enormous amount of taxpayers’ money that is being spent. I cannot promise him a debate in Government time, but I imagine that there is widespread interest across the House on this subject and I would have thought that an application to the Backbench Business Committee would be in order.

Parliamentary Constituencies Bill

Matt Western Excerpts

Consideration of Lords amendments & Ping Pong & Ping Pong: House of Commons
Tuesday 10th November 2020 Commons Chamber

[Matt Western (Warwick and Leamington) (Lab)]

It is a pleasure to follow the hon. Member for Newcastle-under-Lyme (Aaron Bell). I send my good wishes to the Minister for the Constitution and Devolution, the hon. Member for Norwich North (Chloe Smith).

I listened with great interest and, dare I say it, increasing incredulity to the speech by the Leader of the House, particularly his comments on the appointment of the Boundary Commission, given the context of the vote that we are to have tonight on the Committee on Standards, but also events surrounding the Chair of the Intelligence and Security Committee, the appointment of the Chair of the Liaison Committee, the appointment of the chief executive of Track and Trace and the role of Kate Bingham; the list is endless. I appreciate, however, that there is a long-overdue need for us to review the boundaries. The 2011 proposals were made by a coalition Government under the leadership of David Cameron, but I never understood the desire to reduce the number of Members of Parliament from 650 to 600 while increasing the number of unelected Members in the other place to around 800 to 850—I do not quite get that, in terms of the argument around democracy.

Given the time, I want to focus on Lords amendments 7 and 8. Amendment 7 is about the deviation from quota from 5% to 7%. I would stress—as has been done widely around the House, certainly by Members on the Opposition side of the Chamber—the importance of community and identity, and relations between those communities.

Warwick and Leamington is a very good example. When the previous review was undertaken, there were moves to divide the constituency, so that Warwick would become part of a constituency with Stratford, and Leamington would become part of a constituency with Kenilworth. If you knew the geography, you would say that Warwick and Leamington were twinned; they are close relations. There is a symbiosis between those two towns that makes them mutually dependent. That desire to change the boundaries would have driven those closely linked towns apart.

The Council of Europe, through the Venice Commission, said that the standard permissible tolerance should be plus or minus 10%. I believe that is crucial in understanding the communities that we represent, because that is what it is about—the people, and how they have formed communities. The 5% rule creates too small a tolerance to take account of that. Written evidence to the Political and Constitutional Reform Committee’s inquiry noted that the 5% rule caused huge disruption. It noted that the reduction in the number of MPs from 650 to 600 was not a cause of substantial disruption, but it was mostly

“caused by the introduction of the uniform national quota and the 5% tolerance.”

In the study of the 2013 review, the Committee found that the easing of the tolerance to 7% to 9% gave the commissioners much more flexibility.

Looking at Wales, which has perhaps the most constituencies to lose, the topography and the geography are critical. They shape our communities. They shape our economies. It is impossible to understand that when you are looking, perhaps, at the levels of Somerset or at cities such as London—the way in which those community ties are formed. The right hon. Member for Basingstoke (Mrs Miller) cited Rhondda at 50,000, but we really do have to revisit how the communities, say in the valleys, are formed. They face one way. They are discrete, distinct communities. We must not mess with the arbitrary and artificial association. You only have to look at the US congressional districts to see exactly what that means.

Finally, I commend Lords amendment 8, which perhaps we might refer to as the Lord Shutt amendment, and the work that went into it. We must connect with young people. They are so disillusioned by democracy. We must use this opportunity to drive young people’s engagement with the political process, That is why that amendment is fundamentally important, and why I shall vote for it.

[Rachel Hopkins (Luton South) (Lab)]

I will make a few final comments, because many have been made in the Chamber today. The effectiveness and legitimacy of the democratic process is contingent on the public’s confidence in the processes and the commitment of elected representatives to upholding its principles. So I agree that a boundary review must go ahead, as the current constituency boundaries are two decades old, but it is crucial that the review strengthens the functioning of democracy. Lords amendments 7 and 8 are important steps forward in defending and advancing the key principles of representation and voting rights in our democratic process.

I reiterate the important point that I and many others made on Second and Third Reading of the Bill, and here today, that the Government could still change course on amendment 7, which would widen the variance from quota from 5% to 7.5%. As a boundary geek, having worked for the Local Government Commission on ward boundaries, I have done the work of trying to make good boundaries. A strict 5% inhibits the ability of the Boundary Commission to invoke common sense when devising constituencies that protect local ties, reflect local authority boundaries and recognise natural topography, as has been said. Whether it is hills, valleys and rivers, or motorways, main roads and green space, it is really important that we take all of this into account when creating good constituencies to represent our communities.

From my work experience, I understand how the public respond to well-made and to poor boundaries, but it is not just the boundaries: as I understand it, it is also sensible and coherent constituencies that recognise local ties, as against those that look strange, that are strange and that do not reflect community ties. Giving that little extra leeway will give the Boundary Commission greater scope accurately to group community identities, connections and geographical areas. It is not just to do with the fairness of the vote. We also need to talk about the fairness of the representation when we are elected, recognising, for example, how much more difficult it is for Members in the valleys of Wales to get around their constituencies compared with those in a condensed urban constituency such as my own.

The Government have recognised the principle of flexibility in the arrangements that have been made for Isle of Wight and Ynys Môn. I hope that that could be recognised further in creating good constituencies, so we could adopt that slightly higher flexibility to avoid the ratcheting effect, as I call it—or, as it was nicely put earlier today, “the butterfly effect”—where just one constituency could have that extra tolerance. It is important to avoid a number of constituencies not accurately reflecting their constituents.

I also wish to speak in favour of Lords amendment 8. Much has been said about the fact that turnout is healthy for our democracy, which I agree with, and that the ability to vote is a right, not a privilege. Improving the completeness of electoral registers by enabling the Government to ask local authority registration officers to add 16-year-olds to the electoral register when they get their NI number, or ensuring that they are provided with information on how to apply to join the electoral register would be a significant step forward in expanding voter registration and would enable greater participation among young voters. Although the Government are not willing to do the right thing and introduce votes at 16, which I am in favour of, improving voter registration for young voters is a basic, non-controversial change, which could see a vital increase in the number of young people voting. I hasten to add that, when others tell me not to do something, I often think there must be something in it. So, young people, think about why they do not want to encourage you to be on the electoral register.