Oral Answers to Questions

Martin Vickers Excerpts

Tuesday 6th February 2024 Commons Chamber

[Bim Afolami]

I thank the hon. Gentleman for his question. Indeed, the Chancellor announced at the autumn statement last year that, over the next 12 months, the Government will consider selling shares in NatWest. That is all subject to value-for-money concerns and other matters, as he will appreciate, and it is market sensitive. Of course value for money will be at the heart of any consideration of the sale of shares, and the House will be kept fully informed over the coming weeks and months.

[Martin Vickers (Cleethorpes) (Con)]

My right hon. Friend and his colleagues will be aware of the challenges that businesses and households face in coastal communities. As the Budget approaches, may I urge him to be ever mindful of how we maintain the vitality of the economies in our coastal areas?

[Jeremy Hunt]

I absolutely will; that is a core part of the levelling-up agenda, and my hon. Friend will be pleased to know that, since we started on that agenda, two thirds of all new jobs created have been outside London and the south-east. We will continue to look at any proposals he may have in that respect.

Oral Answers to Questions

Martin Vickers Excerpts

Tuesday 19th December 2023 Commons Chamber

[Laura Trott]

My hon. Friend is a brilliant advocate for his constituency. I hear what he has to say and I am happy to meet him to talk about it.

[Martin Vickers (Cleethorpes) (Con)]

My right hon. Friend is well aware of the threat to thousands of jobs at Scunthorpe steelworks and many more in the supply chain that supports it, all of which would have a devastating effect on the economy of northern Lincolnshire. Can he and his colleagues in the Department for Business and Trade bring a speedy conclusion to the negotiations and lift the cloud over Scunthorpe?

[Jeremy Hunt]

I thank my hon. Friend for his campaigning on that issue and reassure him that we in the Treasury completely understand how vital steel is to the future of his area and to his constituents. We will continue to do everything we can to resolve the situation as quickly as possible.

Oral Answers to Questions

Martin Vickers Excerpts

Tuesday 14th November 2023 Commons Chamber

[Martin Vickers (Cleethorpes) (Con)]

Economic growth in northern Lincolnshire will be severely impacted if changes go ahead at British Steel’s Scunthorpe works, which will result in redundancies and a massive impact on the supply chain. Will my right hon. Friend give an assurance that the Government will not proceed with any support for those changes until a full economic assessment of the impact on the local area has been carried out?

[Jeremy Hunt]

I thank my hon. Friend and, indeed, my hon. Friend the Member for Scunthorpe (Holly Mumby-Croft) for their extensive lobbying on this very important issue. I have had meetings with him and her, and with many others, to discuss it. I reassure him that we are absolutely committed to steel production in the United Kingdom, and to making sure that any changes that are necessary support the local communities that depend on steel production.

Oral Answers to Questions

Martin Vickers Excerpts

Tuesday 21st March 2023 Commons Chamber

[Jeremy Hunt]

I thank the hon. Gentleman for mentioning carers, who do an amazing job. It is fair to say that our NHS and care systems would fall over without the incredible job carers do. We will always keep under review what we can do to help these very important people.

[Martin Vickers (Cleethorpes) (Con)]

5. What assessment he has made of the economic outlook for (a) Greater Lincolnshire and (b) Cleethorpes constituency.

[The Chief Secretary to the Treasury (John Glen)]

The Government are committed to creating an environment in which economic growth benefits all. The latest data indicates that productivity in Greater Lincolnshire grew by 8.4% from 2010 to 2020, compared with UK productivity growth of 7.9% over the same period. Coastal communities such as Cleethorpes play a vital role in the economy. I am pleased that, following the announcements on the second levelling-up fund, more than £18 million has been granted for the Cleethorpes masterplan.

[Martin Vickers]

The county of Lincolnshire has great opportunities for economic development in both rural and urban areas. In particular, the Cleethorpes constituency is a major centre for the renewable energy sector and contains a major port at Immingham. Freeport status has been granted for the Humber freeport, but I understand that we are awaiting final Treasury sign-off. Can the Minister give us an indication of when that will happen?

[John Glen]

I am pleased to confirm that the full business case for the Humber freeport has now been conditionally approved by the Treasury, with full approval subject to the customs site being designated and the freeport signing a memorandum of understanding with the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities. The Humber freeport is already open for business, supporting the regeneration of the region by creating jobs and attracting new business investment. I am sorry that Treasury processes can sometimes appear tortuous.

Oral Answers to Questions

Martin Vickers Excerpts

Tuesday 11th October 2022 Commons Chamber

[Felicity Buchan]

I can confirm that we will be going ahead with the second round of the levelling-up fund. There should be decisions by the end of the year, and I wish the hon. Lady well with her bid. An independent assessment of the bids is going on at the moment, but if that meeting is possible, we will do it. Clearly we would need to decide if that was appropriate. I congratulate her on her success in the first round of the levelling-up bids, where she got £20 million for the Squire Lane leisure centre.

[Martin Vickers (Cleethorpes) (Con)]

The renewable energy sector is vital to my constituency and the neighbouring area, and it has done a great deal to level up the local economy. Can the Minister give me an assurance that support for the sector will continue?

[Felicity Buchan]

We are very much committed to the sector, and I would be delighted to sit down with my hon. Friend to discuss this further.

The Growth Plan

Martin Vickers Excerpts

Friday 23rd September 2022 Commons Chamber

[Kwasi Kwarteng]

As I said, the OBR will come up with a full forecast before the end of the calendar year.

[Martin Vickers (Cleethorpes) (Con)]

My right hon. Friend is well aware of the great opportunities in northern Lincolnshire and the Humber region, particularly in renewable energy. I welcome his announcement on investment zones, and I and the two Conservative local authorities in my constituency will want to work with him to deliver that. Even sooner, however, we can deliver on the Humber freeports. Can he confirm that the freeport designation will continue, and will he unblock the process that is delaying their launch?

[Kwasi Kwarteng]

The freeports are certainly continuing and I would be very happy to speak to my hon. Friend about how we can, as he puts it, unblock the process to accelerate the Humber freeport bid.

Financial Services and Markets Bill

Martin Vickers Excerpts

2nd reading
Wednesday 7th September 2022 Commons Chamber

[Martin Vickers (Cleethorpes) (Con)]

I fully support the recommendations in the Bill and it is noticeable that it contains a wide-ranging set of proposals. I am not going to dwell on the more serious issues, as they have all been covered admirably by my hon. Friend the Member for Salisbury (John Glen), by the Chair of the Select Committee, my right hon. Friend the Member for Central Devon (Mel Stride) and, of course, by the former Chancellor, my right hon. Friend the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Rishi Sunak). I am returning to the issue of access to cash, which has been raised by a couple of speakers.

It is not only cash, but the wider range of banking services that is crucial to our local communities. Proposals that have come forward in recent weeks affecting my own constituency involved the closure of what is, in effect, the last bank in the towns of Barton-upon-Humber and Immingham. I am delighted to say that in one case LINK, with which I have been working closely over those recent weeks, has designated Barton as one of its next banking hubs. That announcement came only yesterday, so it has slightly taken the sting out of what I was going to say, but of course, Immingham is still urgently in need of a financial hub. Proposals are being put together, and the local community and I will certainly take those proposals forward to LINK.

It is worth remembering that although when we listen to our constituents we hear tales of how reliant they are on their local bank and the services it provides and so on, we are all to some extent guilty when it comes to the change in the use of branches. I suspect that not one Member present in the Chamber can claim not to have used a credit card or bank card to make a payment when cash would perhaps have been a better option—we have all probably done so today. We have to recognise that; it is very easy to paint the banks as the bad guys, but they obviously have to amend the services they provide. However, it is interesting to note that more than 5 million people in the UK rely on cash on a daily basis, and it is estimated that 4 million adults do not have access to a smartphone and 1.5 million households do not have internet access. As such, while it is important that businesses make decisions in line with the general trends of customer behaviour, it is also important that we do not leave behind those who are in the more vulnerable groups.

As I said, I am delighted that the Cash Action Group and LINK have come together and announced that Barton-upon-Humber will receive a financial hub. That is great news, but we must also remember that it is not just access to cash that is important, so I urge the Minister and his team to think about the wider range of banking services. Until now, people of my generation, certainly, have been more used to face-to-face meetings with banks. Doing online transactions is fine, but when doing online applications for what can be life-changing decisions—a mortgage, for example—giving us guidance and making us think more seriously about the commitments we are making is an important part of the service that our financial institutions provide.

I welcome all that the Government are doing. As it stands, there is no existing legislative framework guaranteeing a minimum level of access to cash and wider banking services, or a single authority with overall responsibility for overseeing a cash system that works for everyone across the country. It is welcome that the Government seek to address that situation through the Bill, which will also empower the regulator to ensure that local communities continue to benefit from a cash withdrawal or deposit facility. I also repeat the point that my hon. Friend the Member for Blackpool North and Cleveleys (Paul Maynard) made: access to cash should be free. One of the things that annoys me and, I am sure, many others is that we are paying to get our own money. I urge the Minister to insert the word “free” into the legislation, something that I am sure would have cross-party support.

Bearing in mind the constraints on time, I thank LINK’s staff for the work they have done in respect of Barton-upon-Humber, and appeal to them to take an equally sympathetic view when making their decision about a banking hub in Immingham. I also urge the Minister to think about inserting that additional word “free” into the legislation.

Oral Answers to Questions

Martin Vickers Excerpts

Tuesday 28th June 2022 Commons Chamber

[Rishi Sunak]

We want everyone to be paid the national living wage. That is the law in this country. I am proud that we have increased it by £1,000 this year, which, combined with our tax cuts, is putting more money in the pockets of the lowest paid. I say again that there are lots of people being paid less than the national living wage but they should not include people in the hon. Lady’s own office.

[Martin Vickers (Cleethorpes) (Con)]

T2. The Chancellor is familiar with the opportunities in northern Lincolnshire and the wider Humber region to advance economic growth; what plans does he have to develop the infrastructure and support local authorities to achieve that?

[The Chief Secretary to the Treasury (Mr Simon Clarke)]

My hon. Friend is a fantastic champion for his region and his support for a freeport on the Humber has been noted across Government. We are of course investing in our levelling-up programme, which has a direct bearing on areas such as the Humber. Crucially, we want to advance devolution within England to allow areas such as his to reap the full rewards and take full control of this exciting opportunity.

Oral Answers to Questions

Martin Vickers Excerpts

Tuesday 17th May 2022 Commons Chamber

[Helen Whately]

Thank you, Mr Speaker. The growth of tourism is really important as part of the wider economic growth of the country, and I would be delighted to meet the hon. Gentleman to talk about his proposal.

[Martin Vickers (Cleethorpes) (Con)]

The designation of Immingham and Grimsby as part of the Humber ports freeport project highlights the need for increased infrastructure on the road network leading to those ports. Will the Minister agree to meet me and neighbouring MPs to discuss this, and particularly an upgrade for the A180?

[Helen Whately]

I would be delighted to meet my hon. Friend to discuss the upgrade to that road. As I have said, we know that infrastructure is really important in supporting economic growth and levelling up all around the UK.

Economic Update

Martin Vickers Excerpts

Thursday 3rd February 2022 Commons Chamber

[Mr Deputy Speaker (Mr Nigel Evans)]

I call Matt Vickers—[Interruption.] Sorry, Martin Vickers.

[Martin Vickers (Cleethorpes) (Con)]

Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker. It must have been the mask.

As the Chancellor did at the time of the pandemic, he has put together a very comprehensive protective shield around people in my constituency, and that is very welcome. Many well-paid jobs are being created, particularly in the energy sector, thanks to Government policies, but there are many, particularly in food processing or the security sector, who are on very modest incomes and fixed incomes. Can my right hon. Friend give them an assurance that he will keep this policy under review so that if the energy price rise continues, as is likely, they can be reassured that support will be available?

[Rishi Sunak]

My hon. Friend is always a champion for those who are working hard and doing the right thing, and that is why he has rightly championed the freeport in his constituency to provide jobs and opportunity for those families. I can give him that reassurance. It is because it is likely that energy prices will remain high and may even increase when the October price cap is set that the rebate of £200 will come in in October—in that month. I hope that will help at that time if energy bills continue to rise then, and of course the £150 will come much sooner, which gives him the reassurance he needs. As I said earlier, we do have to be honest and recognise that we are all going to have to adjust to higher energy prices, but what we can do is slow the pace and scale of that adjustment for families across the country.