Business of the House

Nick Timothy Excerpts

Thursday 15th January 2026 Commons Chamber

[Sir Alan Campbell]

My hon. Friend and I have discussed this matter at length. We intend to publish a report from the client board. Once that has been fully considered by both Houses, I stick to my commitment that MPs will have a final say on the subject. My view is that renewal and restoration presents a great opportunity to do something on a huge scale that will give a big boost to the economy. It is not just about London, but about all parts of the country. A lot of the stone used to build this place comes from Yorkshire, the steelwork comes from Sheffield and, as he pointed out, many of the tiles come from his part of the country. Should the House decide to take these matters forward, I would expect that people in every part of the country would feel the benefit. After all, this House belongs to them.

[Nick Timothy (West Suffolk) (Con)]

People in West Suffolk are furious at the prospect of the county council elections being cancelled yet again, and I reiterate my opposition to that decision. This morning, the BBC reported that Suffolk county council had requested that the elections be cancelled. That is completely untrue, as the county council leader, Matthew Hicks, has made clear, and the BBC has corrected the record. The BBC got that story from somewhere, and everyone suspects that Government officials or advisers briefed the media accordingly because the Government want to cancel the elections and blame somebody else. The elections are now only four months away, so can a decision and a statement be made as soon as possible?

[Sir Alan Campbell]

The Government cannot be held accountable for a misspeak by the BBC on these matters. The hon. Gentleman is going a bit far to find a conspiracy behind everything. I gently point out that the record has been corrected in relation to that council. The reality is that various requests have been made not to bring forward elections, not least because in some areas councillors would be elected for a very short period of time, some of which have been made by Labour-led authorities, some by Lib Dem-led authorities and others by Conservative-led authorities.