"My hon. Friend talks with a great deal of experience in this field. Could she offer a view on whether the introduction of universal credit will make it more straightforward to operate a social tariff through the benefits system or slightly more complicated because it will be less easy to …..." Alison Seabeck - View Speech
"It is more than 14 months since the Department sought guidance from the Commission on how to achieve an uplift in area VII—I spell that out for the benefit of Hansard—effort.
[Hon. Members: “Seven”] Well, it is seven, but it has to be written as “VII”. Can the Minister …..." Alison Seabeck - View Speech
"Will the proposals that the Secretary of State has just mentioned be similar to the present regulations involving landlords and energy companies, or might they be somewhat different?..." Alison Seabeck - View Speech
"Perhaps I can shed some light on what was going on under the previous Government. In the Plymouth south-west area, a detailed pilot was undertaken to identify people for whom water was unaffordable. That was to feed through into forward policy development. Anna Walker used that as part of the …..." Alison Seabeck - View Speech
"It is a great irony for us in the south-west, surrounded by water as we are, that we have the highest water bills in the country. I represent a coastal city that sits on three rivers, and the injustice of the expense of water bills in Plymouth aggravates almost everyone …..." Alison Seabeck - View Speech
"I agree with the hon. Gentleman’s assessment that Ofwat’s role in this regard is key, although I also accept the points made by my right hon. Friend the Member for Exeter (Mr Bradshaw). I have just received an e-mail from one of my constituents that makes exactly the same point …..." Alison Seabeck - View Speech
"I would like to reinforce the hon. Gentleman’s point. Does he not agree that, with the current increase in water rates, we will see more pensioners, particularly in the area around Torbay and in my constituency of Plymouth Moor View, falling back down below the poverty line? The Government would …..." Alison Seabeck - View Speech
"On a point of order, Mr Amess. To avoid any possible misunderstanding, I should draw Members’ attention to an entry in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests by my right hon. Friend the Member for Greenwich and Woolwich (Mr Raynsford), in whom I have an indirect interest: he is my …..." Alison Seabeck - View Speech
"On the glamorous subject of sewage, does the hon. Gentleman share my concern that, apart from the current pressure on bill payers in the south-west, we will have additional pressure from the transfer across of the private sewer network? It seems to be a completely unknown quantity—South West Water does …..." Alison Seabeck - View Speech