Cost of Living

Debate between Stephen Phillips and Angela Smith

Wednesday 16th May 2012 Commons Chamber

[Stephen Phillips (Sleaford and North Hykeham) (Con)]

It is an enormous privilege to have the opportunity to contribute to the debate on the Queen’s Speech, and in particular to speak today about the cost of living, which I think is the subject that touches the constituents of every Member most closely. It is a subject that resonates especially in rural areas such as the one that I represent, because for us the cost of living differs in so many respects from the cost of living for those who live in urban areas. One of the reasons for that is associated with the cost of fuel, and the cost of filling our cars at the pumps.

For those who live in my constituency and in other rural parts of England and the rest of the United Kingdom, having a car is not a luxury but an absolute necessity. The car is the thing in which people drive their kids to school in the morning, it is the thing that they need in order to get to work, it is the thing that they must have in order to do their shopping, and it is the thing that gets them to the doctor and the dentist. For my constituents, journeys that can be made on public transport in London and other metropolitan areas must be made by car, and are quite often lengthy.

[Angela Smith (Penistone and Stocksbridge) (Lab)]

Will the hon. Gentleman give way?

[Stephen Phillips]

I am only just beginning my speech, but I will be kind and give way to the hon. Lady.

[Angela Smith]

When the hon. Gentleman talks of metropolitan areas, he should recognise that they include areas such as South Yorkshire. Two thirds of Barnsley is rural, but it is also a metropolitan area. The issues to which the hon. Gentleman refers apply in many metropolitan as well as rural areas.

[Stephen Phillips]

They certainly apply in such areas to some extent. I do not dissent from that proposition. However, the hon. Lady needs to know the direction in which I am going. Because our constituents—including hers—are so affected by this issue, it is an issue on which the Government should take what action they can take. We are debating the cost of living, and one of the principal costs for those who live in the rural areas in her constituency and in rural areas such as the ones that I represent is the cost of fuel. The Government have tackled that. My right hon. Friend the Chancellor has scrapped £4 billion in duty increases that were planned by the last Government. The Opposition do not like to hear this, but the truth is that the price of petrol at the pumps is 10p a litre cheaper than it would have been if the Labour party had won the last election.

Is there more that could be done to deal with the cost of living? Of course, but Opposition Members also need to remember the huge debt bill—£120 million a day—with which the country has been left. If we were not paying that bill, my right hon. Friend the Chancellor and the other Treasury Ministers would have far more scope to tackle this and other aspects of the cost of living. We have heard Opposition Members criticise the Government today, but they need to remember who was responsible for getting this country into the mess in which we find ourselves.