Draft Mental Health Bill

Debate between Rachael Maskell and Sajid Javid

Monday 27th June 2022 Commons Chamber

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

I welcome the Bill. The acuteness of people’s mental health challenges while in the community is escalating before appropriate intervention is taken. How will the Bill ensure that earlier interventions are made, so that people do not have to go into secure accommodation for their safety?

[Sajid Javid]

Once the Bill is law, it will require the use of secure accommodation to be limited to those who absolutely need to be detained, either for their protection or for the protection of others. Alongside the Bill, we need to make sure that the right resources are there. I mentioned earlier the extra resources that are going in, to a record level, including today’s announcement of the £150 million.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Rachael Maskell and Sajid Javid

Tuesday 19th April 2022 Commons Chamber

[Sajid Javid]

Like many across the House I have been deeply disturbed by the reports we have all seen from Shanghai and my thoughts are with the people affected. It shows what a dangerous fallacy this whole idea of zero covid was, and it also shows that we are the most open country in Europe and that we have got the big decisions right. We did not listen to the Opposition when they said we should not open up in the summer, and we did not listen to them when they again called for restrictions in the winter. We are showing the world how to live with covid.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

T3. My constituents have been forced on to private and unaffordable dental plans or they have to wait up to five years to see an NHS dentist. The situation is getting worse and worse, so I met with the groundbreaking Hull York Medical School to see if it can assist in training a future generation of dentists and it is keen to help; what is the Minister doing to work with medical schools?

Elective Treatment

Debate between Rachael Maskell and Sajid Javid

Tuesday 8th February 2022 Commons Chamber

[Sajid Javid]

My right hon. Friend is absolutely right about the importance of making sure that every penny spent in the NHS, or social care for that matter, is spent wisely and in the very best interests of taxpayers. I absolutely agree with him on that, and that also has to translate into the ambition. My right hon. Friend, like other hon. Members, will not have had time yet to look at the plan. I am happy to discuss it with him afterwards if he wishes. I hope he agrees that it is full of ambition. Indeed, if the NHS can go much further than the targets I set out earlier, that is what we all want. As I said in my statement, it does depend on how many people come back to the NHS, and that is very hard to estimate, but I want as many people as possible to come back.

My right hon. Friend is right to raise the importance of social care and the need for much better integration between healthcare and social care. We will set out more detailed plans on just that very shortly.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

As a clinician, I am astounded by what the Secretary of State has brought forward today. First, he talks about health inequality, then puts forward a solution that will exclude people who experience the greatest health inequality because they also experience digital inequality. Not only that, but people on waiting lists are in a lot of pain. They are put on waiting lists because of the advancement of their condition. They do not need a website; they need clinicians surrounding them to give them the physical and psychological support they need over the two or more years they will have to wait. What plans has the Secretary of State got to ensure that they get the physical and psychological support that they need over that time?

[Sajid Javid]

The hon. Lady is of course right to talk about the importance of health inequalities. I hope that when she has had time to look at the plan she will see just how seriously the NHS and the Government take that. More broadly, I will have a lot more to say about tackling health inequalities shortly. Of course, the hon. Lady is right that there need to be alternatives to digital access for those who cannot easily access digital, be it through a web platform or the NHS app. There are alternatives in place, but I hope she agrees that for those who can use digital tools, we should make them part of the offering. The new “my planned care” service will be hugely important in providing more transparency than ever before, but also in helping people prepare for their surgical procedures. She may have heard me say earlier than one third of on-the-day cancellations of surgical procedures happen because people were not prepared.

Vaccination: Condition of Deployment

Debate between Rachael Maskell and Sajid Javid

Monday 31st January 2022 Commons Chamber

[Sajid Javid]

I am happy to clarify the point raised by my right hon. Friend. The Government have made a decision on this matter, which I hope I was very clear about in my statement, but for statutory reasons there needs to be a consultation. There will be a two-week consultation and then a statutory instrument will be presented to the House and will be subject to the will of the House.

The Government have made their decision on this, and the Department will write today to all NHS trusts and contact care home providers and wider social care settings, such as domiciliary care, to make it clear that the deadline my right hon. Friend referred to is no longer applicable. I am very happy to make that clear. She has raised an important point. While the decision is subject to this House, there will be no further enforcement of the regulations, for the reasons I have set out today.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

The Health Secretary has not only bullied and threatened NHS staff at a time when they are so fragile, but ignored the royal colleges and all the trade unions when they said that the initial statutory instruments should not have been made. In fact, he has not made it clear today that both will be withdrawn, so I ask him to make that clear. I also ask him to say whether or not all those staff who have lost their employment to date will be reinstated with continuity of employment, including their pensions and other conditions?

[Sajid Javid]

I am happy to answer those questions. First, the Government’s decision is to revoke both statutory instruments; I am happy to confirm that. On those who, following the statutory instrument on care home settings, chose not to get vaccinated and preferred to leave their job than do the professional thing and get vaccinated, that was their choice, and that does not change. That policy was right at the time—I have set out the reasons why—because the dominant variant was delta. Should those people choose to apply for a job in a care home once the restrictions have been lifted, that is a decision for them. However, I continue to encourage them to make the right positive decision and get vaccinated.

Public Health

Debate between Rachael Maskell and Sajid Javid

Tuesday 14th December 2021 Commons Chamber

[Sajid Javid]

We all want to relax. I wish I was more relaxed now than I already am. My hon. Friend is absolutely right on that, and I agree with him.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

I appreciate that this is an escalating situation which needs urgent attention, but the fact is that if we are enabling social mixing, that is the very context in which we will see transmission, as we did with delta last December. Will the Secretary of State review these measures, as it seems that the statutory instruments before us today are already out of date?

[Sajid Javid]

It is of course important that we keep measures under review, but, for the reasons I gave earlier, I will continue to present this set of measures to the House. They strike the right balance and are a proportionate response.

Covid-19 Update

Debate between Rachael Maskell and Sajid Javid

Monday 13th December 2021 Commons Chamber

[Sajid Javid]

We will debate the SI in the House, and I shall be happy to talk more about it then, but I think that the number to which my hon. Friend referred is the number of people whom the NHS estimated to remain unvaccinated at the time when the Government said they were going ahead with the SI. I am pleased to inform her that since then the number has fallen. Tomorrow I will come to the House with the latest figure that we have, but it is improving all the time. When we introduced a similar measure in the residential care home sector, we saw the number of unvaccinated people fall day by day as more and more of them had positive engagement and took up the offer of a vaccine.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

When the transmission rate of omicron is twice that of delta and we are asking people to work from home, why are we also telling them that they can go out and socialise in venues unmasked, although the contact tracing data from last December shows that it is in those social spaces that there are high levels of transmission?

[Sajid Javid]

This is about having a balanced and proportionate response, and that is the approach that the Government have taken. It is about recognising that while these restrictions help to slow the rate of spread, they also have a real impact on people’s lives.

Covid-19 Update

Debate between Rachael Maskell and Sajid Javid

Monday 6th December 2021 Commons Chamber

[Sajid Javid]

Yes, I am happy to give that commitment to my right hon. Friend, for all the excellent reasons he gives. We were absolutely right, back at the start of the summer, to open up our country, including removing travel restrictions. That is one of the reasons, with regard to the dominant delta variant, why the UK is in a much better position than many other European countries today.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

When it comes to public health compliance, consistency and clarity of message is important. The variant does not understand the difference between an indoor setting on transport or another indoor sitting, so why can the Secretary of State not ensure that all indoor sittings have the same rules applied to them?

[Sajid Javid]

I believe that the response we have had is balanced and proportionate.

Covid-19 Update

Debate between Rachael Maskell and Sajid Javid

Monday 29th November 2021 Commons Chamber

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

Without in-country manufacturing of the vaccine in the global south, we will never get the protection that we need against this pandemic, and no matter how many donations the Government make, supplies will never meet the demand. Will the Secretary of State therefore look again at the issue of in-country manufacturing, whether that involves release of the patent or other mechanisms, so that we can see a proper scaling up of the delivery of the vaccine in the global south?

[Sajid Javid]

The hon. Lady is right to talk about the importance of in-country manufacturing in the developing world. She will know that India, for example, is one of the largest manufacturers of vaccines, including the covid-19 vaccine, but she rightly points out that this capacity needs to grow and become available in other countries, and it is right to look to see how we can support that.

Covid-19 Update

Debate between Rachael Maskell and Sajid Javid

Friday 26th November 2021 Commons Chamber

[Sajid Javid]

As always, the analysis provided by my right hon. Friend is absolutely correct. On the severity of the new variant, I am afraid we do not know enough yet. From what we can tell from what we might call a desktop analysis, the number of mutations that have been identified—double those for the Delta variant—does indicate that there is a possibility that it might have a different impact on an individual, should they get infected. But as I said earlier, there is a lot we do not know about it and we are working with our international partners to find out more.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

I thank the Secretary of State for his statement and for emphasising the importance of vaccination. However, his statement makes it clear that we are seeing new variants and the risks still remain. Therefore, taking further public health measures is really important. I ask him again to give clear leadership on ensuring that face coverings, social distancing and high levels of hygiene are instituted, as well as better ventilation. Those measures make a difference, as we have seen throughout the past two years.

[Sajid Javid]

The hon. Lady makes a good point about the need to follow guidance and the rules currently in place. The plan A policies that we put in place remain the policies we need at this time, but she will not be surprised to know that we keep them under review and, if we need to go further, we will.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Rachael Maskell and Sajid Javid

Tuesday 23rd November 2021 Commons Chamber

[Sajid Javid]

My right hon. Friend has raised this issue with me before, but he is right to raise it again, because proper use of data is important to the future of the NHS. He may have noted our announcement yesterday that we are merging NHS Digital and NHSX with NHS England, which will enable us to do a much better job with data. I will of course look carefully at that report, and I should be happy to meet him to discuss it further.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

Poppy is just eight. She has severe epilepsy, with ever more frequent and enduring episodes. Her specialist consultant has said that surgery is her only hope, but Sheffield and Leeds have refused to assess her for capacity and administration reasons, not clinical reasons. Will the Minister work with me to ensure that Poppy receives the treatment that she needs?

[Sajid Javid]

I am sorry to hear about the hon. Lady’s constituent, and of course a Minister will meet her.

Covid-19 Update

Debate between Rachael Maskell and Sajid Javid

Monday 15th November 2021 Commons Chamber

[Sajid Javid]

Yes, I absolutely agree with my hon. Friend: the facts and figures now speak for themselves. He referred to the latest data from the UK Health Security Agency today that shows there is more than 90% protection when someone has had their booster dose; as he says, that is protection not just for that individual but for their loved ones.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

The NHS is under severe pressure. Too many people, including those who are vaccinated, are sick and too many people are still dying. Why will the Secretary of State not meet directors of public health, who are tearing their hair out because although the Government have rightly put so much investment into the vaccine programme, they are not investing in other public health measures that would stop covid becoming a disease of inequality?

[Sajid Javid]

The hon. Lady will know that, as I said in my statement, the vaccines are absolutely central to protecting us against this virus, but it would be wrong for anyone to suggest that they are the only thing the Government are focusing on. There is of course a lot more; for example, I draw the hon. Lady’s attention to our recent announcements on antivirals.

Covid-19 Update

Debate between Rachael Maskell and Sajid Javid

Tuesday 9th November 2021 Commons Chamber

[Sajid Javid]

I thank my right hon. Friend for his support. On the assessments that we have done, I have shared some information with the House, and there will be an impact statement followed by an impact assessment that will give him more information. It may be helpful for him to know that studies already in the public domain show that against the delta variant, the AstraZeneca vaccine is 65% effective and the Pfizer vaccine is 85% effective in preventing infection. The fewer people who are infected in these settings, the less spread there will be.

I think I have set out the Government’s thinking on flu, but it remains under review. There are many reasons why we have focused on the 1 April date, but the main one is to give those in the NHS who have not yet had a single jab—there are 100,000 of them—to make the positive decision to get vaccinated.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

In York, vaccination rates are high at 87%, but transmission rates of covid are also extremely high, and transmission is happening in the community. As a result, directors of public health such as my own are absolutely despairing that the Secretary of State and others in the Department are not listening to public health experts who are asking for the tools to be restored to manage the virus. That is about moving contact tracing immediately into local authorities, where they got on top of the virus and locked it down. It is also about ensuring that greater public health measures are taken—hands, face, space needs restoring in all settings.

[Sajid Javid]

The hon. Lady is right to point to the high vaccination rates in York, and everyone involved is to be commended. When it comes to other measures that may or may not be taken, I think the plan A approach that the Government set out is the right one. There may be reasons to take a slightly different approach in certain regional areas, and that is also possible with the right evidence. This is something that we always keep under review.

Covid-19 Update

Debate between Rachael Maskell and Sajid Javid

Tuesday 14th September 2021 Commons Chamber

[Sajid Javid]

I agree with my hon. Friend. Some 6 million adults throughout the UK remain unvaccinated, and we should all do that we can to at least encourage them to think about taking the vaccine, not only to protect themselves but to protect their loved ones.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

I am seriously concerned about the hole in the Secretary of State’s defence—taking away contact tracing from public health teams. The data coming through is now completely insufficient to carry out an effective operation locally and therefore to lock down the virus, and not people, in the future. Will he look at that and ensure that local authorities such as York can have that zero data so we can get on top of contact tracing as soon as the data emerges?

Health and Care Bill

Debate between Rachael Maskell and Sajid Javid

2nd reading
Wednesday 14th July 2021 Commons Chamber

[Sajid Javid]

Clinical decisions should always be made by those with clinical expertise—I think everyone in the House would agree on that—and that should be independent of any outside interference. The Bill does nothing to alter that. What it does is recognise that the NHS is one of the public’s top priorities. We spend over £140 billion of taxpayers’ money on the NHS, and it is right that there is proper accountability for that spending to Ministers and therefore to the House. I think that most people would welcome that.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

The Secretary of State has talked about people he has consulted, so would he confirm that he has consulted the trade unions, particularly on schedule 2, which says that integrated care boards may appoint employees to address remuneration, pensions and terms and conditions. Can he confirm that that is a departure from Agenda for Change terms?

[Sajid Javid]

There have been wide-ranging consultations on the Bill, as I mentioned, which have taken place over the past two years. While I cannot say specifically which trade union or which particular organisation has been spoken to, as I was not in the Department at the time, I know that the conversations have been wide ranging.

The Bill is not the limit of our ambitions on the nation’s health. We are also transforming public health; we are bringing the Mental Health Act into the 21st century; and, by the end of this year, we will set out plans putting adult social care on a sustainable footing for the future.

We are also ambitious for our workforce. I have commissioned Health Education England to refresh its strategic framework for health and social care workforce planning. HEE will work in partnership across the sector and gather views from the widest possible range of stakeholders to help us to shape a workforce with the right skills, the right knowledge and the right values for the year ahead.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Rachael Maskell and Sajid Javid

Tuesday 1st October 2019 Commons Chamber

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

T4. Last week, it was 75 jobs at Portastor and jobs have been lost at Nestlé. This morning I heard about the loss of 60 more skilled jobs across my constituency. Week after week, I am hearing of skilled job losses in the constituency. Instead of the Government talking about outplacement schemes, my constituents want their jobs. So how is the Chancellor investing in economies such as York’s?

[Sajid Javid]

We are investing in York and investing throughout the country by creating a dynamic, free enterprise economy that is creating jobs. We have the lowest unemployment rate in our country in 45 years. I would think that a party that calls itself Labour would actually welcome that. In the hon. Lady’s own constituency, since 2010—since the Labour Government were kicked out—we have seen a fall of 12,300, or 64%, in the unemployment numbers. That is something she should welcome.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Rachael Maskell and Sajid Javid

Monday 15th July 2019 Commons Chamber

[Sajid Javid]

I thank my hon. Friend for the work she has been doing for several years to encourage more people, particularly young people, to take part in sport. She is right about the current position: sports coach is not included as position of trust. Enhanced criminal checks are available, but I agree that we need to do more work, which is why we are reviewing the effectiveness of the law on those who take advantage of young children with sexual relationships and are looking at what more we can do to include them as positions of trust.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

The scope of the DBS is far too narrow. Private tutors are exempt, as are host families of international students. As we head into the summer, it is a reminder that we need to safeguard all young people. What steps is the Home Secretary taking to ensure it is far more comprehensive in who it covers?

[Sajid Javid]

I understand that the hon. Lady has had a meeting recently with the victims Minister, the Under-Secretary of State for Justice, my hon. Friend the Member for Charnwood (Edward Argar), on this very issue, and I am glad that she has raised it. She may be aware that there are changes we have to, and want to, make because of a recent Supreme Court judgment, and because of that I want to bring forward other changes that we are looking at and planning and that, when they happen, she will welcome.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Rachael Maskell and Sajid Javid

Monday 1st April 2019 Commons Chamber

[Sajid Javid]

I hope that my hon. Friend welcomes a change that we have already made to the tier 2 system for non-European economic area workers, when, last year, we exempted nurses and doctors from that cap. As far as the new system is concerned, he is right to raise this issue, and that is why, as we set out in the White Paper, there is a process of engagement over this year to make sure that we are listening, including to the care industry.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

York currently carries over 500 vacancies in our NHS and not just for nurses, so will the Home Secretary look at lifting the cap on tier 2 visas for all NHS professional staff?

[Sajid Javid]

As I just referred to, we have already made a significant change in this area. We also operate a shortage occupation list, which can benefit both the NHS and other sectors where a shortage is identified. I believe that as we set out the new immigration system and through the process of engagement with the White Paper, we can make sure that we get this right.

Windrush

Debate between Rachael Maskell and Sajid Javid

Monday 30th April 2018 Commons Chamber

[Sajid Javid]

My hon. Friend is right to raise this issue and I very much agree with what she says. What happened to Albert Thompson was completely unacceptable. We do not want anyone else to be in that situation, and I will very happily meet her.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

The Prime Minister received a letter from the former Home Secretary on 30 January 2017 apprising her of her continued work on the immigration policy. The Prime Minister is therefore complicit in all that has taken place. Is not the right hon. Member for Hastings and Rye (Amber Rudd) merely a scapegoat for the Prime Minister?

[Sajid Javid]

My predecessor, my right hon. Friend the Member for Hastings and Rye, was a fantastic leader of the Department. She did some great work that I hope to build on.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Rachael Maskell and Sajid Javid

Monday 12th March 2018 Commons Chamber

[Sajid Javid]

First, let me commend my hon. Friend for the work that she does through the all-party group on new towns. She is absolutely right to raise that issue and to emphasise the need for infrastructure alongside new housing. I know that she welcomes the housing infrastructure fund. In terms of holding developers to their commitments, I hope that she will contribute to our consultation on that topic, which was launched just this week.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

20. Figures for York show that no new social housing has been commissioned under the current council for the last three years, except for older people’s accommodation, where there has been a net loss. The right to buy has made things worse. When, under the Government’s new planning framework, will the council be forced to build social housing in York?

[Sajid Javid]

We are working with councils throughout the country to help them to meet their housing needs, including through more social housing where that is required. The proof of that was in the last Budget, in which we increased the housing revenue account—the amount that councils can borrow from the Treasury to build more council homes and other types of social housing. If York wants to take advantage of that, it can.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Rachael Maskell and Sajid Javid

Monday 22nd January 2018 Commons Chamber

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

The centre for housing policy at the University of York is leading on policy development and on validation of the Housing First initiative, yet City of York Council has presided over a fifteenfold increase in street homelessness since 2010. How will the Minister ensure that the residents of York can benefit from Housing First not just in theory, but through action?

[Sajid Javid]

I hope that the hon. Lady agrees that it makes sense to pilot Housing First properly so that we ensure that when it can be rolled out across the country, it will work properly. That is why we have set up the pilot areas. There are still lots of types of help in other parts of the country, much of which comes from the £1 billion of funding that we have allocated to 2020, which includes funding for local authorities such as York.

Local Government Finance Settlement

Debate between Rachael Maskell and Sajid Javid

Tuesday 19th December 2017 Commons Chamber

[Sajid Javid]

My hon. Friend raises the issue of restructuring. Whether it is about changing council borders or the number of councillors, we will look at the proposals that are put to us. They must be bottom-up proposals, but we would look actively at any such proposals.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

On 8 March, the Chancellor announced a complete review of business rates, not just a redistribution. In places such as York, the valuation rates are so high that it is pushing businesses out of business. How will the Secretary of State’s process interface with the Chancellor’s?

[Sajid Javid]

I remind the hon. Lady that when the revaluation happened, it came with £3.6 billion of transitional funding, which will help throughout the country. She is right to ask about some of the longer-term issues relating to the structure of business rates. It is for the Treasury to respond on that and certainly on the timing of any future review. The pilots announced today are part of a plan to make sure that, whatever their future structure, if business rates can be retained more locally, that will give local councils the right incentives.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Rachael Maskell and Sajid Javid

Monday 4th December 2017 Commons Chamber

[Sajid Javid]

I absolutely join my hon. Friend in doing that, and he is right to highlight this issue. The Scottish Government, even on their own targets, have been failing consistently on house building, especially affordable house building. I commend the ideas, energy and ambition shown by the Scottish Conservatives in challenging the Scottish National party to build more homes in Scotland.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

Not a single new home has been registered in York in the last quarter. In the light of the Secretary of State’s rejection of the draft local plan, due to the council’s complete failure to address York’s housing crisis, will he ensure that he works with councillors across the piece, including Labour councillors, to get it right for the city with regard to the houses that need to be built for our future?

[Sajid Javid]

The hon. Lady will know that the Government have invested huge amounts in the past few years to make sure that house building picks up. The rate was down to 100,000 homes a year when the Government took office in 2010, but the figure for the latest year is 217,000. There is a lot more to do, including in York. I have written to the council in York and we are considering with it what we can do to speed up its planned development.

Budget Resolutions

Debate between Rachael Maskell and Sajid Javid

Thursday 23rd November 2017 Commons Chamber

[Sajid Javid]

It really bewilders me that although the Opposition Benches were full yesterday for the Budget, it seems like no one was actually listening. If the hon. Lady had been listening, she would have heard some of the measures that the Chancellor announced, including the change to the delivery test and the new inquiry, which I will come on to.

The Budget provided new money for the home building fund, to get small and medium-sized house builders building again. The Chancellor also promised £630 million for small sites to unlock the delivery of 40,000 homes; £400 million for estate regeneration; a £1.1 billion fund to unlock strategic sites, including new settlements and urban regeneration schemes; and £8 billion of new financial guarantees to support private house building and the purpose-built private rented sector.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

Can the Secretary of State explain why York’s Conservative-led council submitted a local plan that seriously undershot the number of houses he is referring to? Why such a disparity within his own party?

[Sajid Javid]

The hon. Lady will know that we are currently consulting on how councils across the country, however they are led, should assess housing need. Once the proposals go forward, it will be clear that no council will be able to avoid building the houses it needs to.

In the areas where supply and demand are most badly mismatched, where most homes are unaffordable to most people, we will increase local authority housing revenue account borrowing caps by a total of £1 billion. That will allow ambitious councils to invest in new homes where they are most needed. We will bring together public and private capital to support the delivery of five new locally led garden towns in areas of high demand. We are committed to building up to 1 million new homes in the Oxford-Milton Keynes-Cambridge corridor by 2050, and we have agreed one of our first ambitious housing deals, with Oxfordshire, to deliver 100,000 homes by 2031.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Rachael Maskell and Sajid Javid

Monday 24th April 2017 Commons Chamber

[Sajid Javid]

I thought that if anyone was going to raise the opinion polls today, it would be a Conservative Member, but the right hon. Gentleman continues to surprise us all. I say to him again: let us work together on rough sleeping. It is very easy for Labour to make a commitment to end rough sleeping without having any plans, any initiative, or anything in hand to show what they would actually do about it. We have got the ideas, and we have new ideas, for example the Housing First concept which we are trialling already—right now—in Liverpool. The right hon. Gentleman has the opportunity to work with us if he really means it.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

2. What steps he is taking to ensure that local councils support small businesses.

[The Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (Sajid Javid)]

We have doubled the level of small business rate relief to 100% and made it permanent. This means that around 600,000 small businesses will pay no business rates at all. At Budget, we also announced a £300 million discretionary fund so that councils can provide additional support to businesses facing increased bills.

[Rachael Maskell]

York’s economy is being damaged by sharp business rate increases due to the revaluations. While the exemption from paying the full business rates has risen from £12,000 to £15,000, business rate increases have rocketed far beyond that in York. This is totally unfair, and small businesses in the city, previously exempt, are now desperate. Some are facing a 600% increase in their rateable value, including The Slip Inn, and no one knows how the new relief funds will even be distributed—total chaos! Can the Secretary of State say why the business rate burden is falling harder on smaller businesses and if he will urgently review the exemption level?

[Sajid Javid]

Overall, businesses in the north have seen on average a fall through the revaluation process.

[Rachael Maskell]

What about York?

[Sajid Javid]

The hon. Lady talks about York. Since 2010 York has had a 74% fall in unemployment. That is because York has a Conservative-led council working with a Conservative Government. If the Labour party gets its anti-business agenda and hikes up taxes on businesses throughout the country, we know what the result will be.

Housing White Paper

Debate between Rachael Maskell and Sajid Javid

Tuesday 7th February 2017 Commons Chamber

[Sajid Javid]

I have looked at this issue carefully and I am not sure it makes the kind of difference my hon. Friend believes it does. Two thirds of housing demand has nothing to do with immigration; it is to do with natural population growth, particularly through people living longer, and that will have to be catered for regardless. Even if immigration was to fall to zero, we would still have a deficit of some 2 million homes and people would still be in overcrowded homes, so we would still have to keep building.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

Not a single new social home has been commissioned in York under this Tory Government and the Tory-led council, and we have no local plan because the proposals were so unworkable. How will this White Paper help to deal with York’s housing crisis?

[Sajid Javid]

It will help York in many of the ways in which it will help across the country, for example, through the requirement for every local authority to undertake an honest assessment of need and plan on that basis.

UK Steel Industry

Debate between Rachael Maskell and Sajid Javid

Monday 11th April 2016 Commons Chamber

[Sajid Javid]

We have an industrial strategy. People can choose to focus on the semantics—they can call it an industrial strategy or an industrial policy—or they can actually look at the results. As I said earlier, one of the reasons that manufacturing output, sales, employment and exports are all up in the last five years is that this Government have a successful industrial policy.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

Hundreds of Tata long products jobs in design consultancy in York will be saved on completion of the Greybull Capital project. However, we are concerned about the wider productivity plan, in particular with regard to wider support for the supply chain and maintaining confidence in it. What is the Secretary of State doing to support that?

[Sajid Javid]

My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Wales has had some recent discussions on this issue. I think the hon. Lady is aware of that. She is right to raise the issue of productivity more generally. I do not think it is an issue of productivity in our steel industry. If we look at the output of our workers in the British steel industry, we will see that they are second to none in terms of their productivity. We should take this opportunity to commend the hard work of those men and women. Productivity more generally in the UK economy has been a long-running issue. The supply chain is one of the ways to deal with that, especially with regard to import substitution. I think that is where steel has a big role to play, because there are still too many steel imports and I think that a lot of that steel can be purchased here at home.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Rachael Maskell and Sajid Javid

Tuesday 15th March 2016 Commons Chamber

[Sajid Javid]

I think that my hon. Friend is right to raise the issue of red tape regulation, as it can strangle businesses. That is why we are proud that, in the previous Government, we made a £10 billion cut in red tape for businesses and we are committed to make a further £10 billion cut, which I know that he welcomes.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

Small and medium-sized enterprises in York are struggling to be competitive. With the cuts to local authorities, business rates are soaring by 11%, and that is on top of the additional costs that SMEs are paying. I will, if I may, ask a question on behalf of Frank Wood, chair of York Retail Forum, who says, “Do you want the high street without any shops?”

[Sajid Javid]

I think that what Frank would want is a high street full of customers. That means making sure that our economy remains strong. Our economy grew faster than any other G7 country last year, and that was because of our long-term plan, of which we will hear more tomorrow from the Chancellor.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Rachael Maskell and Sajid Javid

Tuesday 2nd February 2016 Commons Chamber

[Sajid Javid]

I have had a lot of thoughts about my hon. Friend, but madness was not one of them.

I agree with my hon. Friend about the new technology of driverless cars, in which Britain is a world leader. Yesterday at MIRA, a world-class facility in Nuneaton, we announced £20 million of funding. That will fund some eight research and development projects in areas across the country, including in the midlands, and 14 feasibility studies. With work like that, his dream of a driverless car to carry him wherever he wants to go will come true by 2020.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

2. What assessment he has made of the effect on businesses of the recent floods.

[The Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills and President of the Board of Trade (Sajid Javid)]

We have made £50 million available to support flood recovery across the north of England following Storms Desmond and Eva, and we have already allocated £11 million to local authorities to support the 4,500 businesses impacted. Local areas also have the discretion to provide grants to any local businesses that have been affected.

[Rachael Maskell]

Floods have an impact on the entire local business community, which is calling for more support. At my business flood meeting in York, it called for a business recovery package, including help to maintain a customer base and to trade expediently. Will the Secretary of State look into that, and will he attend a roundtable with flood victims so that a full business recovery package can be put in place for the entire business community, not just businesses that were flooded?

[Sajid Javid]

The hon. Lady is right to raise this matter. Many businesses have been affected, and when something like this happens it affects the whole community. We are already looking into that. She will know that the money already made available can be used to support businesses in creative ways. On top of that, there is a £2,500 grant to help all businesses affected, and they can apply for a further £5,000.