High Street Retailers Debate
Full Debate: Read Full DebateDepartment: Department for Business and Trade
Tulip Siddiq
Main Page: Tulip Siddiq (Labour - Hampstead and Highgate)Department Debates - View all Tulip Siddiq's debates with the Department for Business and Trade
(1 day, 18 hours ago)
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Mr Campbell
I concur with what the hon. Gentleman said. I notice that this is turning into an intervention debate with a speech, but, given that I intervene very regularly—
Tulip Siddiq (Hampstead and Highgate) (Lab)
On that point, will the hon. Gentleman give way?
Tulip Siddiq
The hon. Member is being very generous with his time. He has brought a very important debate to the House. Others might disagree, but I think my constituency is the best in the world. We have one of the prettiest high streets in Hampstead, but the problem at the moment is that Hampstead post office is under threat of closure because of years of under-investment. I personally have been going there since I was a teenager. Elderly people and small businesses, which the hon. Gentleman referred to, rely on it. Does he agree that if we want our high streets to thrive, the post office has to stay open?
Mr Campbell
I was just coming to the issue of bank branch closures and post office closures, which unfortunately have exacerbated the problem in recent years. We had a debate this morning where some Members mentioned the development of banking hubs, which has helped to a small degree, but they will take some time to roll out. We must remember that more than 2.5 million people are employed in the retail sector across the United Kingdom, so this is not a niche sector that some people are annoyed about but which does not affect a large number of people: this is a huge part of our economy, and it has to be the subject of innovative change and dynamic alignment.