Oral Answers to Questions

Matt Turmaine Excerpts

Monday 13th July 2026 Commons Chamber

[Patrick Hurley (Southport) (Lab)]

7. What assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of the high streets organised crime unit.

[Matt Turmaine (Watford) (Lab)]

9. What assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of the high streets organised crime unit.

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

15. What assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of the high streets organised crime unit.

--- Later in debate ---

[Shabana Mahmood]

First, let me say to my hon. Friend that this is not a pilot; it is the real thing. I have made funding available to every force area in the country to take part in this national crackdown. In addition, I have provided enhanced funding to three hotspot areas where the need is greatest. I would say that success means more shops closed, more criminals arrested and more cash seized.

[Matt Turmaine]

I thank the Secretary of State for her answer. Residents in my constituency of Watford are concerned about crime on the high street, whether that is theft, antisocial drinking and drug use, or violence and hate crime. Does my right hon. Friend agree that it is only thanks to this Labour Government that we are finally getting a grip and dealing with it?

[Shabana Mahmood]

We are certainly starting on that long road to making all our communities safe. We have made good progress so far in this Parliament, with knife crime and knife homicides down very significantly. There are of course 3,000 additional police officers and police community support officers in neighbourhood policing as well. We will make more progress as the Government roll out the measures in our Crime and Policing Act 2026, as well as the wider high streets strategy, which includes the crackdown I have announced, but is part of wider work with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.

Licensing Hours Extension Bill

Matt Turmaine Excerpts

2nd reading
Friday 17th January 2025 Commons Chamber

[Andrew Ranger]

I absolutely agree with my hon. Friend and thank him for that intervention. I get the feeling we are going to hear a lot of pub names today. I named just a few of the 78 pubs that span my constituency. I will not comment on how many of them I have personally visited, possibly more than once.

Hospitality is also vital to tourism in Wrexham. It contributes nearly £120 million to our local economy, and I know that that will be similarly true in other Members’ constituencies. Since the arrival of two well-known Hollywood actors in Wrexham, we have welcomed visitors from far afield, eager to see the home of Wrexham AFC at the world-famous Racecourse Ground and, of course, to be pulled a pint by landlord Wayne at the Turf—there is another one. Accommodating the recent influx of visitors would never have been possible without pubs, cafes, restaurants and hotels stepping up to the plate. I know that that is the case across Britain, where dedicated staff work hard to deliver great service, food and drink to customers. I thank them for all they do, all year round.

Section 172 of the Licensing Act 2003 provides the ability for the Home Secretary to make an order extending licensing hours on a blanket basis, thereby allowing all licensed premises to open for longer at moments of important celebration.

[Matt Turmaine (Watford) (Lab)]

The Daily Telegraph recently visited my constituency to interview people to report on the status and progress of the new Labour Government. This piece was largely conducted by interviewing people residing within, or emerging from, the Moon Under the Water public house on Watford High Street. Has my hon. Friend considered the implications of these proposals on the ability to do such easy journalism in constituencies such as mine?

[Andrew Ranger]

I had not considered that, but my hon. Friend makes a valid point.

Measures to extend hours provide the additional benefit of boosting the hospitality sector. Blanket licensing hours extensions introduced by the Secretary of State mean that businesses do not have to apply for individual extensions, should they wish to stay open longer to celebrate a particular event. Under normal circumstances, venues have to apply for a temporary event notice, which costs £21 for an application and involves considerable administrative work. The Bill will have the twofold impact of saving businesses time and money and meaning that local licensing authorities avoid the strain of being required to process large numbers of individual applications, possibly at very late notice.

Licensing hours extensions in England and Wales have been implemented on occasions, including royal weddings and jubilees and major sporting events, such as when the England men’s football squad reached the finals of the Euros in 2020 and 2024. These events bring us together to share in these occasions, whether that is their joy, the perhaps inevitable trauma when England lose on penalties again, or the anticipated jubilation when Wales reach the world cup final or when Wrexham reach the FA cup final. There is generally less of an urgent issue with royal events, for which more notice is generally available. The situation is much more complicated with sporting events, when there can be only a few days’ notice of a team reaching a semi-final or final. Unfortunately, that has led to significant occasions where it has not been possible for the Government to extend licensing hours.