John Bercow
Main Page: John Bercow (Speaker - Buckingham)
Sajid Javid
With respect, the right hon. Gentleman is being a bit disingenuous in his use of those figures and so-called facts. He will know that when it comes to women’s refuges—
Mr Speaker
Order. “Disingenuous” means dishonest and—[Interruption.] Indeed. The word cannot be said without a response. The Secretary of State is a most versatile fellow—very dextrous in his use of language—and I am sure he will withdraw it and use some other word. [Interruption.] Order. I cannot hear what the hon. Member for Bolsover (Mr Skinner) is chuntering from a sedentary position, but we can always have a cup of tea later.
Sajid Javid
I withdraw the word “disingenuous”, and let me say that the right hon. Gentleman is not being as clear as he could be if he wanted to be. When it comes to women’s refuges, we have dedicated £20 million, which will provide some 2,200 additional bed spaces. In future years, it will be right to see what the demand is and make sure we make appropriate resources available. [Interruption.]
Mr Speaker
The hon. Member for Bolsover is right to say that if somebody who uses an unparliamentary word refuses to withdraw it, that Member has only one place to go—and that is out. That applies across the piece, but to be fair, the right hon. Gentleman did withdraw the word, so the crisis has been averted. [Interruption.] Order. Anyway, it is on the record and I hope the hon. Gentleman is now content. He has a beatific smile on his face, and I think this should be canned.
Mr Clive Betts (Sheffield South East) (Lab)
Mr Peter Bone (Wellingborough) (Con)
In the light of the county council’s financial situation, would the Minister be keen to look at emerging proposals from across Northamptonshire about how local government might be better restructured?
Andrew Bowie
I thank my right hon. Friend for that answer. The work of his Department and the pledge in the Budget to build 300,000 new homes in England are very welcome, and will go some way to address growing intergenerational unfairness when it comes to getting on the housing ladder. Will he join me today in calling for the Scottish Government to match the Scottish Conservatives’ pledge to build 100,000 new homes north of the border so that young people in my constituency can have the same opportunities to buy as those in constituencies in England?
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.
Christine Jardine
The number of homes delivered for social rent has fallen by more than 85% since 2010. Just 5,380 are expected to have been completed in 2016-17, compared with nearly 40,000 in 2010-11. The Budget contains virtually no support for the building of new social housing, and only £6 billion of new money for housing altogether. Is that not a far cry from the £50 billion that was called for by the Secretary of State himself, and does it not mean that the number of houses will fall far short of the number that we need?
Mr Speaker
Order. That was far too long; absolutely hopeless. The hon. Lady’s questions will have to be much shorter in future. I am always keen to encourage her—she is a new Member, and a prodigious attender—but she needs to apply the blue pencil.
Alok Sharma
Since 2010, nearly 128,000 homes for social rent have been built in England, and 118,000 have been built for affordable rent. The hon. Lady talks about the money available for housing. I can confirm that, as my right hon. Friend the Chancellor said in his Budget statement, we are making at least £44 billion available over the next five years.
Mr Speaker
The hon. and learned Lady is an illustrious QC, so I am sure that she is capable of asking an extremely pithy question.
Lucy Frazer
I will try, Mr Speaker.
East Cambridgeshire has established five community land trusts. Does the Minister agree that such trusts are a valuable way of ensuring that local people can have affordable homes locally?
Alok Sharma
My hon. and learned Friend makes a very important point. I commend her for the work that she is doing in encouraging the development of community land trusts, for which I announced additional funds only last week.
Mr Speaker
Two Members are standing and seeking to catch my eye who have not contributed. I will call each of them, but their questions must be extremely brief—a short sentence. If you cannot do it that way, I do not want to be unkind, but don’t bother.
Rebecca Pow
I will talk very fast, Mr Speaker. May I say a big thank you to the Housing Minister for coming to Taunton Deane last week, where he met protestors at the Staplegrove development to see how important the road through the development was? Are the Government pursuing the right policy in putting more money into the housing infrastructure fund to guarantee that we get the roads that we need to make our houses work?
Alok Sharma
Absolutely; I can confirm that, as a result of the Budget, there is £5 billion in the housing infrastructure fund, which is precisely what many colleagues want to see in terms of spending on infrastructure.
Mr Speaker
Before we move on, I have been notified of a number of intended points of order springing directly out of Question Time. I say for the record that, on this occasion, I will take Members on trust and take those points of order now. However, if it becomes apparent to me that they are really just a way of trying to continue Question Time or if they are too long, when I have specifically said that they must be short, I will cut them off and the process of taking any—[Interruption.] Order. If that happens, the process of taking points of order at this time will be discontinued and those Members will be responsible.
I look to the shadow Secretary of State to set a good example, with a proper point of order done briefly—for which read “a sentence”.
John Healey (Wentworth and Dearne) (Lab)
On a point of order, Mr Speaker. Can you offer any guidance to the House on your expectations and on the conventions? We just heard the Secretary of State, after an hour of Question Time, say in an offhand way, in answer to the hon. Member for St Austell and Newquay (Steve Double), who has now left the Chamber, that later this afternoon he will make a statement about the backing the Government will give to garden villages and urban extensions. Surely we should have expected that either in a written statement this morning or certainly through a reference in the body of questions this afternoon, so that the House had a chance to ask him about it.
Mr Speaker
My understanding is that a written ministerial statement is expected. Whether that WMS is the WMS concerned, I do not know.
Mr Speaker
The simple nod—in fact, two nods of the head in unison by the Secretary of State and the Housing Minister—suggest that that is the gravamen of the matter. I am bound to say that it would be preferable, if such announcements are intended, for them to be worked into Question Time in some way, not by elongated replies, but by responding at topicals. What has happened is arguably irritating to colleagues, but it is not demonstrably disorderly. We will leave it there for now, but the shadow Secretary of State has made his point with his customary force and alacrity.
Mr Barry Sheerman (Huddersfield) (Lab/Co-op)
Will the nods appear in Hansard?
Mr Speaker
I do not know whether the nods will appear in Hansard. There will be no graphic images, but reference to the nods will appear. I hope that that satisfies the insatiable curiosity of the hon. Member for Huddersfield (Mr Sheerman).
Luciana Berger
On a point of order, Mr Speaker. In answer to my hon. Friend the Member for Warrington North (Helen Jones) about the Mersey tolls, the Under-Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, the hon. Member for Rossendale and Darwen (Jake Berry), said that he had spoken to the Metro Mayor and that the Metro Mayor supported the tolls. I have been in contact with the office of the Metro Mayor of Liverpool and he says that he said no such thing. Would the Minister like to correct the record and withdraw his remarks?
Mr Speaker
I am grateful to the hon. Lady for raising her point of order. The answer is that it is for each and every Member, be they a Front Bencher or a Back Bencher, to be responsible—[Interruption.] Order. It is for each and every Member to be responsible for the veracity of what is said in this place. If a correction is required, it is better sooner rather than later. If the hon. Gentleman judges that no correction is required, that is his prerogative.
Jake Berry
No correction is required, Mr Speaker. I discussed the matter with the Metro Mayor of Liverpool as we walked across the bridge while it was under construction. Perhaps he will remember with the added detail.
Mr Speaker
In that case, we will leave it there. It was right that it was aired and I am grateful to the Minister for his response. I cannot be expected to adjudicate between the competing witness accounts.