Written Question
Friday 16th June 2023
Asked by:
Ian Lavery (Labour - Blyth and Ashington)
Question
to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether his Department has had recent discussions with relevant stakeholders on the adequacy of funding for homeless charities and shelters.
Answered by Felicity Buchan
The Department has regular discussions with local authorities and voluntary organisations about their work to end rough sleeping.
Written Question
Friday 31st March 2023
Asked by:
Ian Lavery (Labour - Blyth and Ashington)
Question
to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, for what reasons the Government has entered into partnership with DP World to run Thames Freeport given its criticism of the business in 2022.
Answered by Dehenna Davison
Businesses operating in Freeports are subject to the same UK employment laws and protections as they would be elsewhere in the country, including the Seafarers' Wages Bill which received Royal Assent on 23 March 2023 and will make access to UK ports conditional on operators of regular services demonstrating that they will be paying at least an equivalent rate to the UK National Minimum Wage whilst in UK waters.
Speech in Commons Chamber - Wed 08 Jun 2022
Levelling-up and Regeneration Bill
"I am going to ask the question, “What does levelling up actually mean?” My hon. Friend the Member for Denton and Reddish (Andrew Gwynne) asked the same question, and people in our communities have not got a clue what this means.
In my view, levelling up should be about people. …..."Ian Lavery - View Speech
View all Ian Lavery (Lab - Blyth and Ashington) contributions to the debate on: Levelling-up and Regeneration Bill
Written Question
Friday 25th February 2022
Asked by:
Ian Lavery (Labour - Blyth and Ashington)
Question
to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that partially sighted and blind people are able to easily participate in elections; and if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of ensuring that (a) at least one large version of the ballot paper is displayed inside each polling station to assist voters who are partially-sighted and (b) a mechanism is made available to enable voters who are blind or partially-sighted to cast their vote without need for assistance from the presiding officer or a companion.
Answered by Kemi Badenoch
- Leader of HM Official Opposition
The changes in the Elections Bill aim to strengthen the support for all voters with disabilities in the polling station and improve the way that this support is delivered. Rather than a blanket provision, we want disabled voters to get the support that is right for them and for Returning Officers to tailor their approach to suit the needs of disabled electors in their area - including blind and partially sighted voters. The provision of a large print ballot paper will remain in law and there are no plans to change this.
The Government is working with the Electoral Commission to support guidance which will provide a consistent framework for Returning Officers. This guidance will be twofold in setting out clear and thorough details of what support should be provided to disabled voters and providing practical guidance to assist Returning Officers in carrying out the new responsibilities effectively. The guidance will also be produced in partnership with the Government’s expert Accessibility of Elections Working Group, which includes representation from a number of disability charities and civil society organisations. The Commission will review the implementation of this guidance and ensure it is being implemented effectively through its performance standards used to monitor and assess how well Electoral Registration Officers and Returning Officers manage their duties.
Speech in Commons Chamber - Wed 02 Feb 2022
Levelling Up
"The levelling-up programme should not just be about shiny infrastructure projects. It should be about real people and life opportunities. Life expectancy is not addressed in this hefty document. Life expectancy in Windlesham in the Secretary of State’s constituency is 86.7 years; in parts of my constituency it is 72.5 …..."Ian Lavery - View Speech
View all Ian Lavery (Lab - Blyth and Ashington) contributions to the debate on: Levelling Up
Speech in Commons Chamber - Mon 01 Nov 2021
Budget Resolutions
"I have been in this debate all afternoon, and I have to say that I am more discombobulated now than I was before I came in. I am not sure what is meant by “levelling up”; a number of attempts have been made to explain it, but I cannot understand …..."Ian Lavery - View Speech
View all Ian Lavery (Lab - Blyth and Ashington) contributions to the debate on: Budget Resolutions
Speech in Commons Chamber - Mon 13 Sep 2021
Levelling-up Agenda in the North
"It is a pleasure to examine in this House a phrase that so many of us have heard over the past year. However, perhaps little real thought has been given as to what it actually means. “Levelling up” is the latest catchphrase, the latest rhetorical device, to emanate from the …..."Ian Lavery - View Speech
View all Ian Lavery (Lab - Blyth and Ashington) contributions to the debate on: Levelling-up Agenda in the North
Speech in Commons Chamber - Mon 13 Sep 2021
Levelling-up Agenda in the North
"I thank my hon. Friend for that intervention and of course I would agree with those sentiments. I would certainly agree to use some form of wealth tax, which would benefit people in this country.
The commission said that
“three regions—Yorkshire and the Humber, the North East and the West …..."Ian Lavery - View Speech
View all Ian Lavery (Lab - Blyth and Ashington) contributions to the debate on: Levelling-up Agenda in the North
Speech in Commons Chamber - Mon 13 Sep 2021
Levelling-up Agenda in the North
"I thank my hon. Friend for that intervention and I will be coming on to the Marmot report later in my contribution, because it is extremely important.
Life expectancy is unbelievably different in various parts of this country and levelling up should be about tackling the likes of life expectancy. …..."Ian Lavery - View Speech
View all Ian Lavery (Lab - Blyth and Ashington) contributions to the debate on: Levelling-up Agenda in the North
Speech in Commons Chamber - Mon 13 Sep 2021
Levelling-up Agenda in the North
"Absolutely. I thank my friend for that intervention. I think I mentioned early on in my contribution that levelling should not be rhetorical. Levelling up is a serious issue and we need to know how the Government will actually level up.
On climate change, the costs are being passed on …..."Ian Lavery - View Speech
View all Ian Lavery (Lab - Blyth and Ashington) contributions to the debate on: Levelling-up Agenda in the North