Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Stephen Crabb and Susan Elan Jones

Wednesday 18th November 2015 Commons Chamber

[Stephen Crabb]

The truth is that Wales’s future prosperity depends on whether we can transform the economy, improve productivity, invest in transport infrastructure and improve our skills and education. That is where Wales’s future prosperity and success lie, and the question of whether or not we remain in the European Union is therefore a secondary one.

[Susan Elan Jones (Clwyd South) (Lab)]

The Secretary of State is just a little bit shy today. Why cannot he just recognise that 191,000 Welsh jobs are totally dependent on EU trade and that Wales is a net beneficiary of EU aid? Cannot he just say—we will protect him from the Tory “Little Britain” sketch on the Benches behind him—that Wales is better off in?

[Stephen Crabb]

I am not often described as shy; I am interested that I have come across in that way to the hon. Lady this morning. I do not recognise the figure that she cites. The important point is that the single market creates a really strategic opportunity for Welsh business. That is what we need to defend and extend.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Stephen Crabb and Susan Elan Jones

Wednesday 17th June 2015 Commons Chamber

[The Secretary of State for Wales (Stephen Crabb)]

I have regular discussions with the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Treasury Ministers, the First Minister and the Welsh Finance Minister on the level of funding received by the Welsh Government.

[Susan Elan Jones]

The Secretary of State may be aware that my constituency had the terrible news yesterday that Dobson & Crowther in Llangollen had gone into administration. Will he assure me that he will work with the Welsh Government on that? Does he agree that the £50 million of in-year cuts to the Welsh Government’s budget that the Chancellor has brought in are a very bad thing and that we cannot have the same thing again, because we need to be working together for the people of Wales?

[Stephen Crabb]

We are aware of the situation in the hon. Lady’s constituency. We stay in close touch with Jobcentre Plus and the Welsh Government to find ways to support those who face uncertainty over their jobs. We have just been through an election campaign in which responsibility over finances was at the heart of the debate. The fact that she is standing here today, saying that the Welsh Government should somehow be immune from shouldering any of the responsibility for getting on top of our national finances, shows that she has learned nothing from the past five years.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Stephen Crabb and Susan Elan Jones

Wednesday 8th January 2014 Commons Chamber

[Stephen Crabb]

I am surprised by the hon. Gentleman’s question, because there has been nothing consistent about Labour’s approach to energy policy either in government or in opposition.

[Susan Elan Jones (Clwyd South) (Lab)]

3. What assessment he has made of the effects on living standards in Wales of the measures announced in the autumn statement.

--- Later in debate ---

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Wales (Stephen Crabb)]

The autumn statement set out further measures to ensure that there is a responsible economic recovery. That is the only way to achieve the sustained rise in living standards in Wales and across the UK that we all want to see.

[Susan Elan Jones]

May I associate myself with the tributes that have been given?

I thank the Minister for his answer, but many of us are dismayed that the autumn statement did little to address issues related to poverty. Does the Secretary of State really believe that it is right that food bank usage in Wales has gone up 1,400% since 2010? Surely that is not acceptable.

[Stephen Crabb]

We know that the Labour party discovered food banks only in 2010. Before that, Labour Members denied that they even existed. In the autumn statement and at the end of last year, we saw average wages in Wales increasing at double the rate of inflation and personal disposable income in Wales increasing. The situation is still very challenging for many households in Wales, but the overall picture is positive, and the hon. Lady should support that.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Stephen Crabb and Susan Elan Jones

Wednesday 16th January 2013 Commons Chamber

[Susan Elan Jones (Clwyd South) (Lab)]

1. If he will meet Digital UK to discuss the adequacy of levels of service experienced by television viewers in north-east Wales.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Wales (Stephen Crabb)]

I am always happy to meet relevant organisations to discuss issues affecting levels of services provided to the people of Wales.

[Susan Elan Jones]

I thank the Minister for his response. Digital UK is funded by the TV licence but the level of service it has been offering to many of my constituents, and other people in north-east Wales, has been totally shambolic in terms of the lack of provision of English or Welsh language Welsh television services. In some cases it has even told people to buy Freesat boxes, which is pathetic. Will the Minister ensure that the situation is sorted pronto, and that if Digital UK carries on being that pathetic it will be required to fund those Freesat boxes? The situation in north-east Wales is unsustainable.

[Stephen Crabb]

I am aware that in certain parts of Wales there are specific issues concerning the reception of digital television, and that some communities cannot receive the full suite of digital channels that most people receive. I understand that most of those problems are relatively straightforward to sort out, but where there are persistent problems I will be more than happy to meet the hon. Lady and Digital UK, and possibly Ofcom, which may be more appropriate in that respect,