Oral Answers to Questions

Derek Twigg Excerpts

Tuesday 19th December 2023 Commons Chamber

[Jeremy Hunt]

What I can confirm is that, as a result of the measures I took in the autumn statement, it will be lower at the end of the scorecard period than it would otherwise have been, and a lot lower than it would be under any Labour Government.

[Derek Twigg (Halton) (Lab)]

May I ask the Chancellor how many middle-income taxpayers have been paying the higher rate of tax since 2019?

[Jeremy Hunt]

I am happy to write to the hon. Gentleman with the exact numbers, but for people on low incomes—people being paid the lowest legally payable wage—their post-tax real income has gone up by 30% since 2010, because the Conservative party believes in making work pay.

Oral Answers to Questions

Derek Twigg Excerpts

Tuesday 5th September 2023 Commons Chamber

[John Glen]

Kettering General Hospital is always at the top of my mind when I come to Treasury questions, but the bigger challenge, as my hon. Friend rightly points out, is how we ensure the efficiency of the expenditure of every pound of taxpayers’ investment in the health estate. I shall continue to work with the Secretary of State on that plan for the 40 hospitals to make sure that we achieve that.

[Derek Twigg (Halton) (Lab)]

In the many discussions that the Minister says he has had with the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what figure did they discuss with him that he estimates inflation will be at in the next financial year?

[John Glen]

There are a range of forecasts, but we have to deal with the reality. I am trying to ensure that, across all of the decisions that Secretaries of State make, we reprioritise effectively and deliver frontline services, but I do not have a number for the hon. Gentleman this afternoon.

Mortgage and Rental Costs

Derek Twigg Excerpts

Tuesday 27th June 2023 Commons Chamber

[Derek Twigg (Halton) (Lab)]

Every day I hear from constituents, as many of us do, who are facing hardship as the cost of living crisis spirals out of control. It is truly extraordinary that in Britain today, people across our communities are having to worry about whether they can afford to heat their homes or feed their families, which is a major worry that we will see again as the weather cools down and we come into autumn and winter this year.

We now face another crisis, courtesy of a Conservative Government who seem entirely clueless as to a solution: a mortgage bombshell that leaves homeowners wondering whether they can even keep a roof over their heads. Let us be clear about the scale of the mortgage bombshell. In Halton, there are currently 9,600 households with an average mortgage payment increase of £1,600 a year. I hear from constituents who have lost mortgage deals and simply do not know what to do. Young people trying to buy their first home have been cruelly disappointed; for many, the dream of their first home will not be realised any time soon. That is another way this Government are failing young people. Others tell me that their mortgage costs are rapidly becoming unaffordable.

Worse still are the heartrending stories I hear from constituents who are about to lose their homes altogether. In Halton, the waiting list for social housing is huge, with over 4,000 households on it. Halton Borough Council is doing everything it can to help those in desperate need of a home, but as in so many other parts of the country, its services are stretched to breaking point.

[Mrs Paulette Hamilton (Birmingham, Erdington) (Lab)]

Time and again I meet people in my surgery who can barely afford to feed their family, let alone afford rent hikes. Does my hon. Friend agree that people in communities across the country cannot afford to pay the price of a Tory Government?

[Derek Twigg]

My hon. Friend makes an important point, and she is absolutely right. Places such as my constituency, with some of the highest rates of poverty in the country—which I will come to shortly—are finding it particularly difficult.

There are homeless children from my constituency living in hotels out of the area, who are struggling even to continue to attend their local schools. Recent figures from the End Child Poverty coalition show that 30.9% of children in Halton are living in poverty, but at Widnes food bank donations are now falling below demand. That food bank is purchasing food using monetary reserves. Food inflation has adversely affected the ability of people who had previously donated food to do so—what a disgrace in this modern age. This is at a time when rising numbers of people in my community need to turn to food banks because they cannot afford the essentials that we all need to survive. The situation is becoming unsustainable.

I have been contacted by an increasing number of constituents whose landlords are being forced to sell up as they cannot afford their own mortgages. Nearly 200 households in my constituency are classed as priority homeless, and less than a handful of social housing properties become available each week. There is little point in telling those people to look into private renting, as local housing allowance falls even further behind the spiralling cost of rent. In Halton, local housing allowance for a three-bedroom home is £593 per month, but the current lowest private rents are £750 per month. Local housing allowance for a two-bedroom home is £498 per month, with the current lowest private rents at £650 per month. More and more of my constituents face the nightmare of homelessness, and more and more cannot afford the essentials needed to survive.

What is truly shocking is that this did not have to happen in this way. Last autumn’s mini-Budget, founded on unfunded tax cuts and pushed through without proper scrutiny, was an exercise in economic recklessness that has left hard-working people having to shoulder yet another burden. There is also the impact of inflation, of course, and the fact is that this Prime Minister, when he was Chancellor—I challenged him on this at the time—did not take inflation seriously enough. We know the impact that inflation is having on the cost of interest rates and, therefore, mortgages. The Government have created this catastrophe, and they need to take more urgent steps to address it.

Labour’s five-point plan could help to ease the crisis. I urge the Government to consider the measures that we are putting forward—requirements that would cover the whole mortgage market, unlike the Government’s charter with selected banks. Local housing allowance must be increased if we are to stem the tide of evictions that threatens to completely overwhelm housing services across the country.

This is Government incompetence, plain and simple. It is hurting hard-working people, and it is high time that the Tories stop thinking about how they can grab cheap headlines and instead focus on doing more to really help the many people who are about to lose their homes. The fact remains that this country is worse off under the Tories—people feel worse off themselves. We are seeing failings across public services of a sort I have never seen in my lifetime, and the fact is that this Government need to go now.

Russia: UK Companies

Derek Twigg Excerpts

Wednesday 7th December 2022 Commons Chamber

[James Cartlidge]

We have set out precisely that with the commitments that the Prime Minister made in March, when he was Chancellor, on the desire to see businesses divesting from Russia. The hon. Member for Eltham (Clive Efford) is aware that there have been many high-profile public cases of firms divesting, and other colleagues have spoken of companies in their constituency. They all use the phrase that the shadow Minister used, which is “doing the right thing,” and I totally agree. Ultimately, that is why we have our very strong sanctions regime.

[Derek Twigg (Halton) (Lab)]

I congratulate my right hon. Friend the Member for Barking (Dame Margaret Hodge) on securing this important urgent question, and I associate myself with the calls for generators for Ukraine. For Putin to be defeated, and for him to know that he will be defeated, it is essential that there remains rock-solid support for Ukraine from the UK and the west. Not only is that about defence materiel, military equipment and humanitarian aid, but it means ensuring that no British company, for whatever reason and in whatever way, benefits Putin’s regime. The Minister mentioned a desire to achieve certain things, but a desire is not enough, so will he go away and look again at what more can be done in legislation—if necessary, through new legislation—to ensure that that situation stops, and will he make a statement to the House next week?

[James Cartlidge]

We always keep our sanctions regime under review. In particular, we are looking with our international partners at what more can be done on illicit finance and so on. [Interruption.] The hon. Member talks about desires, but these very strong sanctions are having an impact in practice on Russia’s economy. We are sanctioning 1,200 individuals and 120 entities. We have already heard reports of frozen assets worth £18.4 billion. What matters above all—this is what he wants—is that we stand with the people of Ukraine and show that we support them. No country, other than the United States, has done more than we have, and we should be proud of what we have done. I absolutely guarantee that the Government will work night and day to keep supporting the people of Ukraine in the wake of this terrible invasion.

Economic Situation

Derek Twigg Excerpts

Wednesday 12th October 2022 Commons Chamber

[Chris Philp]

The energy intervention will make sure that inflation in this country is about 5% lower than it otherwise would be. That is not a Government forecast, but the consensus of independent forecasters. Also, the inflation rate in the United Kingdom is lower than in some other countries, including Germany and Holland.

[Derek Twigg (Halton) (Lab)]

No matter what the Minister has said today, the sums do not add up—that is a fact. The Government have lost control of the situation and shown a level of incompetence that has rarely been seen in British politics. As a result, we have seen increased anxiety and even terror about the cost of living and energy bills, as well as mortgages. On pensions, can the Minister give an absolute guarantee and assurance that people do not need to worry about the future of their pensions?

[Chris Philp]

If the hon. Member is asking about the state pension, the Prime Minister has been clear that we stand by the triple lock. If he is asking about the private pension system, yes, I have complete confidence in the Bank of England’s responsibilities around financial stability. On his first comment, I think that having the lowest unemployment rate for 48 years and the highest economic growth in the G7 is something we should all be happy about.

Cost of Living: Fiscal Approach

Derek Twigg Excerpts

Wednesday 25th May 2022 Westminster Hall

[Several hon. Members rose—]

[Derek Twigg (in the Chair)]

I am not going to impose a hard and fast rule, but I hope that Members will be considerate and keep their speeches to no more than five minutes. That will ensure that all colleagues get in on the debate. I am going to implement a hard and fast rule on the start time for the wind-up speeches. The SNP spokesperson will start no later than half past three.

--- Later in debate ---

[Jamie Stone]

Carers for the elderly, the infirm and the sick are crucial in remote parts of Scotland such as my constituency. I have carers pulling out, giving up and calling it a day right now. I am sure the hon. Gentleman agrees with the hon. Member for Barnsley Central (Dan Jarvis) that we must look again, as a matter of extreme urgency, at—how shall we put it?—payments for carers and the regime for taxation on mileage for them and other health workers who have to travel. It is a crisis right now.

[Derek Twigg (in the Chair)]

Order. I remind Members who take interventions to bear in mind that I am trying to keep speeches to around five minutes.

[David Linden]

Thank you, Mr Twigg. I am coming to the end of my remarks. I pay tribute to the hon. Member for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross (Jamie Stone), who is himself a carer. More can be done on mileage, and I certainly echo the calls for HMRC to reform it. The Government need to look again at the carer’s allowance, because it is inadequate, particularly south of the border.

There is one last thing that I would like the Government to reflect on. I appreciate that there are massive ideological differences between me, as someone who believes that the state has a big role to play in people’s lives, and the Government, who undoubtedly do not believe that. However, given that Select Committees are receiving evidence from senior figures that the economy is in an apocalyptic situation, the Government should be considering placing price controls on food. I appreciate that they would not be naturally comfortable doing that, but we cannot end up in a situation where our constituents are not even able to choose between heating and eating and are instead left with nothing at all. I know that that view will be borne out.

In closing, many of my constituents have less than £10 in their bank account. They cannot afford to nip down to the local shop for the most basic provisions. Yet we have a Chancellor, who is responsible for the fiscal approach, who managed to spend £10,000 to nip down to Wales for a Tory gala dinner. That strikes me as the action of someone who is quite out of touch, which might be why we are having this debate today.

[Derek Twigg (in the Chair)]

I remind Members that you can see on the clock what time it is.

--- Later in debate ---

[Tim Farron (Westmorland and Lonsdale) (LD)]

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Twigg. I congratulate the hon. Member for Barnsley Central (Dan Jarvis) on his excellent opening remarks and on securing this debate.

There is a tide of poverty, terrifyingly large, growing in every single community in our country. I wonder what the point of this place is if we do not seek to meet the needs of people who literally cannot see how they can put food on the table for their children, pay their bills or pay their rent or mortgage. It is a crisis like no other facing this country.

I will focus my remarks on how that tide of poverty is affecting rural communities such as mine in Cumbria and elsewhere in the country. In my constituency, we have incredibly low unemployment—very low. Pretty much everybody I know, particularly those on low wages, are working multiple jobs. The idea that they can do extra hours or get a better-paid job is a colossal insult to them, as they work tirelessly to provide for their families. The massive majority of people in receipt of universal credit in our communities in Westmoreland, South Lakeland and Eden are in work. They work incredibly hard, but their wages do not keep pace with the rapidly rising cost of living.

The cost of living in an area such as our is exacerbated by the cost of housing. The average house price in my constituency is about £270,000 and the average household income is about £26,000. Do the maths: nobody on an average income can afford anything like an average home in our community. There is extra pressure, because the pandemic has massively increased the housing need in our area. We have seen the absolute evaporation of the long-term private rented market into the holiday let market. In my community, there has been a 32% rise in one year in the number of homes going into the holiday let sector. What were those holiday lets beforehand? They were people’s homes—family homes. People were evicted via section 21s—something the Government said they would abolish in their manifesto—and the availability of properties for those families to live in was diminished.

In parts of Devon, there has been a 70% reduction in the availability of long-term lets that are affordable to local families. It feels like the lakeland clearances are going on in our community. In Ambleside, a couple, both of whom worked, with children in the local school, were given their marching orders—they were evicted via section 21 from the rented property they had lived in for several years. There was nowhere else available in their community to rent, as everything else had gone to Airbnb or become a second home, so they had to give up their jobs, their children had to be removed from their school, and the family had to move to the next county in order to start all over again. It is miserable, and the consequence for our economy is huge.

What does it mean for our workforce? In the dales town of Sedbergh, which is a relatively small place, with fewer than 2,000 houses, there were 103 job vacancies as of last week because there is nowhere affordable for anybody on a modest, moderate, average or low income to rent, never mind buy—that is for the birds in the current era. That impacts on business. Some of the poorest people I know in communities such as mine run their own businesses. They pay and keep their staff—they cannot recruit enough staff—and they pay themselves less than the minimum wage. They live on next to nothing; they live in poverty.

Another huge problem that affects rural communities such as mine is fuel costs. Many of my constituents are not on the mains, so there are no energy price caps, no matter how high and ridiculous the prices are for people who run their property off liquid gas or oil. If someone wants to get the bus just one way from Kendal to Ambleside to get to their job, they have to spend more than an hour’s pay. Likewise, fuel costs are much more impactful when people have to travel miles and miles. My hon. Friend the Member for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross (Jamie Stone) also mentioned the huge impact on the care sector. We cannot recruit people to care for people in their homes.

We cannot miss the impact that the Government’s fiscal policies are having on farming. This year the Government are taking 20% of farm incomes without replacing them for 98% of the farmers in my community. That has an impact on rural poverty in communities such as mine throughout Cumbria. It also impacts on our ability as a country to produce food, and that means rising food prices for everybody else. It is morally wrong and incredibly stupid.

Of course the Government should be taxing the energy companies and redistributing that money to ensure that people are not in penury. Of course they should be cutting VAT to help people. The bottom line is that press releases will not pay bills. The Government need to act now.

[Derek Twigg (in the Chair)]

I will now impose a four-minute limit on Back Benchers, and I will call the SNP spokesman no later than 3.41 pm.

--- Later in debate ---

[Gerald Jones (Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney) (Lab)]

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Twigg. I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Barnsley Central (Dan Jarvis) on securing what is an extremely timely debate, given that this is the biggest issue facing our country and our constituents.

The cost of living crisis is causing great hardship in Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney, and right across the country. We desperately need measures to tackle it and, at the very least, an emergency Budget that introduces a windfall tax to bring people’s bills down now. Yesterday’s news that the energy cap could increase to £2,800 in the autumn is truly frightening.

The Government do not seem to have a plan. During the Queen’s Speech debate, the Prime Minister hinted that help would be announced “in the coming days”, only for the Treasury to announce in the following hours that that was not the case. That is an example of the lack of a joined-up approach across Government.

Recently, I met my local citizens advice bureau, which highlighted growing hardship across the constituency. I was alarmed to hear that overall client numbers have doubled in recent months. Queries about energy have increased by 250%, which is evidence of the fuel poverty crisis, and are now mainly about support to pay fuel bills. Debt numbers have increased by 200%, and council tax debt is now the biggest issue. That is worrying, as those are household debts. Probably most worrying, however, is the massive increase—more than 500%—in requests for food bank vouchers and other charitable support. My local food banks operate in challenging times and, on a number of occasions recently, have come close to running out of food, given the huge demand.

The fact that nothing in the Queen’s Speech tackled this growing crisis demonstrates that the Government are not listening or, if they are, that they are failing to act, which shows a shameful lack of compassion. A windfall tax would be a start. As we have heard, it is grossly offensive that energy giants are announcing their highest ever profits—recently, Shell announced profits of more than £7 billion in the first quarter of the year—and yet the Government have so far refused to implement a windfall tax. At the same time, people are struggling to choose between heating and eating. The Government must rethink their approach. We need a proper plan, and we need it now.

We also know that many public service workers are out of pocket from just doing their jobs. Many use their cars to do their job, such as care workers and social workers, who visit vulnerable adults and children. They are now repaid less than what they spend on petrol, thanks to the out-of-date HMRC mileage rates. I support the call of my hon. Friend the Member for Barnsley Central to review those rates.

It is clear that public sector pay is also key to levelling up, as public sector workers make up one in seven employees in every region of the UK. In the north-east, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, increasing public sector pay would provide a boost to the economic regeneration of the country, given that we are seeing the steepest drop in living standards since the 1950s. The Government have levers at their disposal, and they must use all of them to help ease the huge pressure on thousands of families across the country. Talk on this issue simply is not enough; we need action, and we need it now. I look forward to the Minister’s response and hope that she can demonstrate that the Government will act, and act quickly.

[Derek Twigg (in the Chair)]

I am afraid I will have to reduce the limit again, to three minutes. I call Jim Shannon.

--- Later in debate ---

[Lucy Frazer]

I or another Minister would be very happy to meet the hon. Lady to discuss that.

We are helping to deal with the cost of living, but the only way out of the rising inflation that we face is to grow the economy more broadly, and that is what we are doing. I reiterate that the Government stand ready to do more to support people across the UK who are struggling with cost of living pressures. We will take action to ease these burdens, where we can, in the short term, while exercising responsible economic leadership to deliver the conditions we need to prepare the UK economy for the future.

[Derek Twigg (in the Chair)]

I call Dan Jarvis to wind up.

Downing Street Christmas Parties Investigation

Derek Twigg Excerpts

Thursday 9th December 2021 Commons Chamber

[Michael Ellis]

Mr Case, the Cabinet Secretary, will have to determine how he wishes to deal with that matter. One would expect him to take a robust course.

[Derek Twigg (Halton) (Lab)]

My constituents, like those of a lot of hon. Members here today, are very angry about what has gone on at this party. They have made sacrifices throughout the year, and they think that one of the outcomes of this should be the resignation of the Prime Minister. He should take full responsibility for the incompetence that has been going on in his Government.

I think it is important to get to the point here. Surely someone yesterday must have asked the person at the rehearsal for the press conference who asked Allegra Stratton the question about the party why he asked that question. We would like to know the answer to that.

Secondly, to come back to the point made by the hon. Member for Wellingborough (Mr Bone), I am sure that the Minister wants to come to this House fully briefed and to respect the House for what it is. Before he came here today, did he not ask anybody at No. 10 who briefed the Prime Minister that no party took place?

[Michael Ellis]

I share the hon. Gentleman’s constituents’ anger. I know that they will be representative of constituents around all the parties. [Hon. Members: “Gatherings!”] The fact of the matter is that the gatherings will be investigated for what they were and for the scope thereof, and I think he knows that.

Budget Resolutions

Derek Twigg Excerpts

Wednesday 27th October 2021 Commons Chamber

[Derek Twigg (Halton) (Lab)]

We will see whether the Chancellor’s optimistic forecasts for the economy come true. I believe we have many more difficult times still to come. I particularly note that he skipped over the threat of inflation, which I will mention quickly, and the damage that will do to the economy and household income. He did not even really mention the potential of interest rate rises, which we may face in the future and would have a substantial impact on people’s standard of living. We have already seen and heard that the tax burden is rising to its highest sustained level in history. This Budget will not properly address the real concerns of my constituents over the rising cost of their weekly shop, the huge increase in the price of fuel at the pump and the eye-watering increases expected in energy bills. This Budget shows that the Government are out of touch with ordinary people.

Even the rise in the living wage, alongside the announced universal credit taper change, will not offset the £20 loss in universal credit that has hit families hard. Many people in my constituency have had no pay rise for years. There is also the Government’s culpability in the lack of planning to deal with our increasing need for energy, its supply and the rising costs, or to deal with things such as the shortage of HGV drivers, which was well known before. All those problems are down to the Government’s lack of planning and foresight to come up with solutions to help address them.

My hon. Friend the Member for Hackney South and Shoreditch (Dame Meg Hillier) raised the issue of the Test and Trace organisation and system and the eye-watering waste of £37 billion of taxpayers’ money, which is about a fifth of the NHS budget. That shows that the Government are guilty of wastage not just here, but in various contracts they have let in the past 12 months or so.

I will spend the brief time that I have on the NHS. As we know, the NHS is in crisis. It is just about coping only because of the dedication and hard work of its staff in a perilous situation. The Government’s focus since March 2020 was on covid, and that was understandable and right, but it was at the cost of treating people with other conditions such as cancer and coronary disease. It may be that more people will lose their lives over time as a result of conditions other than covid because of that problem. Until recently, the Government had no plan in place to deal with that foreseeable problem. Even now, with the additional funding the Government have announced for the NHS, there is no guarantee as to when wating lists will be brought down to pre-pandemic levels.

It is now more difficult to see a GP face-to-face. That is partly because Tory Governments since 2010 have failed to ensure that the NHS and general practice doctors and nurses have the staff they need. The British Medical Association medical staffing report was published in July 2021. It shows that across primary and secondary care, there are currently 2.8 doctors per 1,000 people in England, while the average in comparable OECD EU countries is 3.7. If the rate of medical workforce growth remains the same, it will take until 2046 before the NHS has the number of practising doctors needed to match that average. That puts us 25 years behind where we should be today. The number of patients per GP practice is 22% higher than it was in 2015, but the GP workforce has not expanded with that rise in patient need. As a result, there are now just 0.46 fully qualified GPs per 1,000 patients in England, down from 0.52 in 2015. As we all know, there is also an urgent retention issue with GPs.

I raise that issue because, despite the significant money the Government are putting into the NHS, the significant problem is that we just do not have enough staff. The shortage of doctors, nurses and specialist staff in our hospitals has happened on this Government’s watch, and I repeat that they have been in power since 2010. The latest NHS vacancy statistics for England relate to June 2021. There were 93,806 full-time-equivalent vacancies in hospital services in England, amounting to a 7.2% vacancy rate. For nursing posts, there were 38,952 vacancies, which is a 10.3% vacancy rate. For medical posts, there were 9,691 vacancies. Constituents are finding it increasingly difficult to get an NHS dentist.

When it comes to social care, local authority budget pressures are immense. My local authority has faced a cut of almost 60% in its funding since 2010. It has to make £21 million more of savings in the coming years. It is the 23rd most socially deprived borough in England and Wales. The social care crisis is forcing councils to hike council tax, and the Government are of course trying to deflect blame for that when they are not funding councils properly for social care. We are seeing increasing problems, which will get worse this winter, with discharges from hospitals into a care setting. The Budget does not go anywhere near funding the shortage that councils are facing because of Government cuts. On education, the catch-up funding and the money that the Chancellor announced is something like a third of what Sir Kevan Collins asked for before he resigned earlier this year.

I am clear that as a result of the Budget, low and middle-income families in my constituency will struggle with the cost of living, but those on high incomes and the very rich will not. The Chancellor has failed to bring forward any real sustainable solutions to the cost of living crisis coming this winter. He has proved that he is out of touch.

Economic Update

Derek Twigg Excerpts

Monday 11th January 2021 Commons Chamber

[Rishi Sunak]

My right hon. Friend is absolutely right and has spoken passionately about this throughout his entire career. I firmly agree with him: this must be a private-sector-led recovery. Government cannot and should not do everything. We can support free enterprise by investing in skills, innovation and infrastructure, but ultimately it will be those small and medium-sized businesses that create the jobs that we desperately want to see.

[Derek Twigg (Halton) (Lab) [V]]

Like my hon. Friend the Member for Sefton Central (Bill Esterson), I am very disappointed that the Chancellor has not given support for the many self-employed people who are not getting help, but my question is on another issue. The Chancellor appears to have little appreciation of how low-paid people manage to survive from week to week. Given the huge coverage today pleading with people to stay at home and follow the rules, I would have expected him to have announced better support for those who need to isolate. The fact remains that some people who should be isolating will go into work because they are struggling to put food on the table or pay their heating bills, and cannot afford to lose any income. I ask the Chancellor again: will he go away and look at what extra support can be given to ensure that people who are isolating do not lose any income and that gives them the incentive to stay at home?

[Rishi Sunak]

We have in fact put in place payments to financially support those who need help when they are asked to stay at home, and they are available up to £500. As we have now reduced over time the period of self-isolation, the real value of those payments has actually increased, in some cases by 20%, 30% or 40%, depending on when people were contacted. More generally, throughout this crisis the Government have always made sure that we look after the most vulnerable. That is clear in the measures that we have taken and clear in the data that was published over the summer showing that those on the lowest incomes have had their situation protected the most by this compassionate Conservative Government.

Additional Covid-19 Restrictions: Fair Economic Support

Derek Twigg Excerpts

Wednesday 21st October 2020 Commons Chamber

[Derek Twigg (Halton) (Lab)]

I am really pleased that the Government have listened to my representations and those of my city region colleagues about reopening gyms. That is so important to the mental and physical wellbeing of my constituents in Halton. It will also save jobs that would otherwise have been lost.

Despite the business support the Government have already put in place, there are over 2,000 more people unemployed in my constituency than there were in March, and youth unemployment has doubled. Placing Halton in tier 3, which I opposed, has hit the hospitality sector particularly hard, impacting especially badly on low-paid and young people. Even those businesses that have managed to remain open, such as restaurants and pubs that serve food, are struggling. The 10 pm curfew has been damaging and no one supports it. Then there are the restrictions on households meeting, which have also impacted those hospitality businesses that are still open. They have had to cut staff hours and lay staff off. Those businesses also need financial support from the Government.

Tier 3 restrictions will massively impact the supply chain that serves the hospitality industry, with the loss of more jobs. Taxi drivers are also impacted by a loss of income. The Government introduced the tiered approach to restrictions and, as we have seen in Manchester, they will be imposed if local leaders do not agree. Therefore, the Government have a clear moral responsibility to provide funding that properly supports businesses affected by tier 3 restrictions.

I have been contacted by self-employed constituents who have received little or no support, often because they do not work out of a business premises. I want the Minister to listen to some of the ordinary voices of my constituency. This is from a musician and songwriter:

“Since my last gig in February 2020 I have received absolutely NO financial aid from the various schemes put in place by this govt. Although I applied for everything, I and hundreds of thousands like me who have a limited company but no permanent work premises…are unable to access any grants, furlough or indeed support from the various systems put in place.”

This is from a sound engineer:

“I work as a freelance audio engineer and rigger. I have my own Personal Service Company of which I am the only Director and contractor and I am employed on an event by event basis in the live entertainment industry. My skills and services contribute to the creative industries which include live events, TV, film, dance and theatre and which were worth £110bn to the annual economy as evidenced in the Government’s”

own figures. He goes on to say:

“I do not see how I will be able to survive financially.”

This is from a fitness instructor:

“I would be grateful if you could highlight the fact that the majority of fitness instructors, who deliver the group exercise classes, and personal trainers are self employed and fall into the group that are hardest hit in the climate. The governments 3rd stage grant of 20% leaves a massive shortfall for people in this field.”

This is from another type of business—a coach travel business. Its owner says:

“Unfortunately whilst many of the schemes are welcome the coach industry doesn’t seem to have any sector support that it qualifies for despite being an industry hit the hardest. Companies that genuinely need a helping hand and would otherwise be successful are forgotten.”

People live to what they earn. Thousands of my constituents face massive cuts in their income without proper support. I remind the Minister that the package of support that the city region asked for was £709 million. The funding package given so far has not met the need. The Government need to provide a much more realistic package of funding and support for businesses and jobs in Halton.

I repeat what I said in the Chamber a couple of weeks ago: in order to get us through this unprecedented crisis in modern times, we need everybody to work together. I believe that we need a cross-party covid war Cabinet that at the very least has my right hon. and learned Friend the Leader of Opposition in it. Constituents tell me that they want politicians to work together to find a way forward and do the right thing. We need to look again at the shielding policy, given that it is older and the most vulnerable people who are being admitted to hospital, and gain public consent again for the best, most common-sense measures, as well as washing our hands, wearing a mask and keeping a 2-metre distance.

I find it heartbreaking to see constituents who have no money, who are desperate and find it really difficult to pay bills. It really is time for the Government to step up to the mark and provide proper and better help to everybody in my constituency who needs it.