Budget Resolutions
Debate between Nigel Evans and Liz Twist(8 months, 3 weeks ago)
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Liz Twist (Blaydon) (Lab)
Listening to yesterday’s Budget, we could be forgiven for thinking that the Chancellor was living in a different universe from the rest of us. Wages are stagnating, taxes are rising, growth is stalling, and nothing the Chancellor announced yesterday has changed that. The OBR’s own figures tell us that this will be the worst Parliament on record for living standards. After 14 years of economic failure, his legacy is less money in people’s pockets and the highest tax burden since 1949.
The Chancellor tells us that absolute poverty has gone down and that growth can come only from a high-wage, high-skill economy, which we are supposed to believe his party is on the way to building. Let me tell him that that is not the reality that my constituents are dealing with.
The Chancellor may try to tell us that people are better off after cuts to national insurance contributions, but for every 5p that my constituents get back, they will be paying double that in extra tax according to his plans and the package. People are being squeezed further and further as prices continue to rise. Even a reduced inflation rate means that prices are going up and costing people hard. For those already on low pay, the benefit is even less. The cut is better for higher paid workers and comes at the cost of lower-paid workers, many of whom live in my constituency.
For generations, parents have hoped that their children would have it better than they did growing up. Of course, that has never been guaranteed, but for too many people today it is a far-off dream. There are 9 million young workers in this country who have never seen sustained average wage rises. This is the only Parliament on record where living standards have fallen. Consecutive Conservative Governments have seen inequality outstrip that seen in any other large European country, and our public services on their knees just as people need them more than ever.
Many of us in the House will recognise the stories behind these statistics in the constituents who come to our office doors in the most desperate of circumstances with nowhere else to turn. A report released in January by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation laid out the extent of rising poverty and destitution, which is hitting families with children and disabled members hardest. It said:
“This is a story of moral and fiscal irresponsibility”,
and it is one that affects constituents in Blaydon and across the north-east. In the north-east, the proportion of children in poverty who are from working families has risen from 56% to 67% in less than a decade. That is the impact of Tory Government decisions on real people’s lives day to day.
Times are really hard for people, and we know that there is a well-established link between socioeconomic factors, such as financial distress, and mental health problems, and vice versa. It was therefore disappointing to see nothing on offer in this year’s Budget to tackle our mental health crisis, and organisations such as the Samaritans, YoungMinds and the Mental Health Foundation have all commented on that. Despite uncertainty and anguish in the sector about the ringfenced funding for local suicide prevention plans, which is set to run out this financial year, we did not hear a word about those plans on Wednesday. Nor did we hear anything about specialist mental health support in schools, suggesting that the Government’s aspirations remain limited to covering just 50% of schools. The hon. Member for Redditch (Rachel Maclean), who is just walking into the Chamber, talked about people with mental health problems and bad nerves. Would it not be great if we could tackle NHS waiting lists for mental health services so that people could get the support and diagnosis they need and could improve their lives?
In the meantime, the picture on social care also remains bleak, with the Government’s ambition failing to meet the essential needs of older people, disabled people and their carers, and with local authorities struggling to balance their budgets. There is nothing to tackle that issue.
As a north-east MP, I noticed the Chancellor’s reference to a deeper devolution deal for the north-east. I am pleased to see the north-east getting more powers, and many more powers are needed regionally. However, our aspirations in the north-east are even higher than those in this deeper devo deal, and I have no doubt that we will continue to press for even more measures to reduce regional inequalities.
If one thing was clear from yesterday’s Budget, it was this: the Government are out of touch and out of ideas. Unable to face up to the crisis they have presided over, they are left spinning and scrabbling, trying to tell us that we are out of the woods, while our constituents feel the impact of the recession and tell us about it. The Government’s plan has failed. It is time for a new approach. It is time for a general election.
Local Radio: BBC Proposals
Debate between Nigel Evans and Liz Twist(1 year, 5 months ago)
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Liz Twist (Blaydon) (Lab)
I congratulate the right hon. Member for Hemel Hempstead (Sir Mike Penning) on securing this popular debate. Local radio matters. It matters for community, for inclusion and for democracy. We all know that it is a foolish politician who underestimates local radio journalists and their ability to hold power to account.
As we have heard from other hon. Members, local radio matters particularly in the north-east, where we have the highest figures for digital exclusion in England and where there is a strong sense of local identity, with local culture embedded in the lives of all my constituents. A 2021 Institute for Public Policy Research report estimated that 40% of the north-east population has no or a very low level of digital engagement. Local radio is a vital way for many people to get involved and be informed about many aspects of public life.
For many, local radio is also a source of connection, crucial to combating loneliness and instilling a sense of local community. We must not forget that point about loneliness. It is really important that we work together to address that issue, and not to make it worse. We have heard from others how important it is to local people that they have that local radio connection.
Some 92% of over 55s listen to some form of radio every week, with around 5.4 million people listening to BBC local radio weekly. Those figures tell a tale about those who rely on local radio for news and companionship. If that is to be stripped back, it will have a dire effect for all those listeners. It is the BBC’s intention to cut up to 50% of its local radio output across 39 stations in England. Clearly that fails in representing the values that those 5.4 million listeners look for in their local radio content.
Briefly, I want to talk about the issue of “local”. In the north-east, there may be a debate between Tyne and Tees for people’s local radio preference, but having that very local knowledge is important to many people in our communities. I know that from my own experience.
The question of accessibility has also been raised. Local radio is a great way of communicating. People who are blind or have other disabilities may find it very difficult to use new digital services. I worry that that has not been taken into account and needs to be looked at.
As we have heard, the changes bring about casualties among our fantastic local presenters, who are being pitted against each other and, frankly, being treated badly by their employer as they look for alternative jobs. They are being given the impossible task of competing against each other and facing uncertain circumstances. The story that local journalists and staff have told us is that there has been a managed decline by the BBC. I commend all those local journalists who are taking action to support their local station.
Others have mentioned the role of Ofcom, which has been calling for the BBC to better resonate with viewers and listeners. It is important that the BBC looks again at those provisions. I urge the Minister to work with us to get the BBC to pause this plan, and engage with the public on the restructure through the consultation, which has been sadly lacking.
Point of Order
Debate between Nigel Evans and Liz Twist(4 years, 2 months ago)
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Liz Twist (Blaydon) (Lab)
On a point of order, Mr Deputy Speaker. Earlier this afternoon, I asked a question of the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care about prevention of suicide, with reference to middle-aged men and today’s Office for National Statistics figures. The Secretary of State replied briefly and started by saying that it was good to see suicide figures going down. Sadly, he was mistaken. The ONS figures published today show an increase over the previous year, particularly in the group to which I referred: middle-aged men. Can you advise me, Mr Deputy Speaker, how I can ensure that the record is corrected and whether you will request that the Secretary of State comes to the Chamber to correct the record?
Mr Deputy Speaker (Mr Nigel Evans)
I thank the hon. Lady for advance notice of her point of order. I was not here for the statement, so I did not hear the question or the answer, but I would ask those on the Treasury Bench to bring that point of order to the attention of the Secretary of State. If he unintentionally made a mistake in the response that he gave, then I am sure that he will correct it in the normal way. Thank you.