Oral Answers to Questions

Tommy Sheppard Excerpts

Wednesday 17th November 2021 Commons Chamber

[Owen Thompson (Midlothian) (SNP)]

2. What comparative assessment he has made of the equity of allocations from the (a) levelling-up fund and (b) shared prosperity fund to Wales and the rest of the UK.

[Tommy Sheppard (Edinburgh East) (SNP)]

4. What comparative assessment he has made of the equity of allocations from the (a) levelling-up fund and (b) shared prosperity fund to Wales and the rest of the UK.

--- Later in debate ---

[Simon Hart]

I hope the hon. Gentleman is able to endorse what I am about to say because, of course, that is exactly what these funds do. For the first time, 22 local authorities in Wales and other stakeholders are having a say in devolution. The Welsh Government do not have a monopoly of wisdom any more than the UK Government do, and we are taking devolution to its dictionary definition. He will probably know this but, under the UK community renewal fund, Labour areas got 44% of the funding, Plaid Cymru areas got 24%, independent areas got 17% and Conservative areas were fourth at 15%.

[Tommy Sheppard]

Let us be clear that independent estimates tell us that, over the next five years, the difference between what the devolved Administrations would have got through structural funds and what they will get through the shared prosperity fund is £4 billion. Will the Secretary of State stop promulgating this myth, this deception, that there will be no difference as a result of leaving the EU and admit that this is just another Brexit broken promise?

[Simon Hart]

We are hearing a Brexit broken record, to be honest. The settlement for Wales has gone from £15.9 billion to £18 billion, plus £120 million from the levelling-up fund, plus £47 million from the community renewal fund, plus the community ownership fund, plus more than £300 million-worth of EU tail-off funds, plus £337 million of agriculture funding. It is impossible to come to any conclusion other than that this has been a fantastic settlement for Wales.

Oral Answers to Questions

Tommy Sheppard Excerpts

Wednesday 16th September 2020 Commons Chamber

[Jo Gideon (Stoke-on-Trent Central) (Con)]

What recent assessment he has made of Wales’s role in the proposed UK internal market.

[Tommy Sheppard (Edinburgh East) (SNP)]

What recent discussions he has had with the First Minister of Wales on legislative proposals for a UK internal market.

[Ben Everitt (Milton Keynes North) (Con)]

What recent assessment he has made of Wales’s role in the proposed UK internal market.

--- Later in debate ---

[Simon Hart]

My hon. Friend raises an interesting point. There have been numerous engagements in person with the Business Secretary and others, and online engagements, and I can safely assure the House that those who have responded have not expressed any great concerns about UKIM. In fact, they see it as a perfectly natural successor to the existing status quo. They want us to proceed with it, they consider it to be fair, and more importantly they think that jobs depend on it.

[Tommy Sheppard]

Ministers seem to be in a state of denial about what this internal market Bill actually says. It is quite clear that it will give the power to the UK Government to make spending decisions in Wales on matters that are devolved to the Welsh Parliament. Can the Secretary of State tell the House how on earth that respects the devolution settlement?

[Simon Hart]

The hon. Gentleman illustrates my point. It seems that in certain nationalist quarters this is all about politics and power, whereas in fact it is all about jobs and the economy and people grafting their way into a post-covid world. The Welsh Government will not lose a single power—not one—after the Bill is passed; in fact they will have 70 new ones. The fact that the UK Government will be there as well to contribute to the economy of Wales in a way they have not been able to for 45 years should be welcomed by him and his colleagues in Wales as a major step forward.

Oral Answers to Questions

Tommy Sheppard Excerpts

Wednesday 13th January 2016 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

I certainly join my hon. Friend in welcoming the investment in his constituency, where the claimant count has fallen by 39% since 2010. That is obviously welcome news. I will take up the point he makes, because obviously we are only going to continue to attract investment if we make sure our road and rail networks are up to date.

[Tommy Sheppard (Edinburgh East) (SNP)]

Q3. The Prime Minister will be aware that last week this House discussed the equalisation of the state retirement age between men and women. Does he feel the outrage of a generation of women born in the 1950s who feel robbed and cheated out of their state pension, and will he give an undertaking to look at further improvements to transitional arrangements, given the unanimous decision of this House to ask him to do so?

[The Prime Minister]

I know that many colleagues have been written to on this issue, and there are some important cases to look at, but what I would say is that we looked very carefully at this at the time and decided that no one should suffer more than an 18-month increase in the time before they were expecting to retire. What I would also say is that what we are putting in place—with the single-tier pension starting at over £150 a week, combined with the triple lock—is a very good settlement for pensioners. It is affordable for the taxpayer and it is generous into the future.