Economic Growth Debate

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Department: HM Treasury

Economic Growth

Tom Gordon Excerpts
Monday 7th September 2026

(4 weeks ago)

Commons Chamber
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Emma Reynolds Portrait Emma Reynolds
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I can reassure the right hon. Gentleman that when I was Environment Secretary I visited the port of Belfast and saw the kinds of checks that were going on there. The sanitary and phytosanitary agreement that we are negotiating with the EU will help to reduce that friction.

Tom Gordon Portrait Tom Gordon (Harrogate and Knaresborough) (LD)
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The Chief Secretary talks about £150 million for investment in the north. How much of that funding is actual new capital expenditure from this Government, or is it simply a repackaged, reannounced sum of money for the north?

Emma Reynolds Portrait Emma Reynolds
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It is money that already sits with the British Business Bank, but the change is the focus on the north, on scale-up businesses, to ensure that we unleash their growth potential. We are not announcing new funding; we never said we were.