Speech in Commons Chamber - Wed 24 Apr 2019
Local Government and Social Care Funding
"It is a privilege to follow a very moving speech by my hon. Friend the Member for Crewe and Nantwich (Laura Smith), who outlined the severe problems faced by our social care service.
On a slightly different note, last year I had the pleasure of attending the launch of renovation …..."Paul Sweeney - View Speech
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Speech in Commons Chamber - Wed 24 Apr 2019
Local Government and Social Care Funding
"Perhaps the hon. Lady is not fully aware that the total managed expenditure of the Scottish Government has been cut by only 1.6%. Unlike councils, they have total discretion over that spending. Councils are heavily ring-fenced by the Scottish Government, which is why core budget cuts to councils have been …..."Paul Sweeney - View Speech
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Speech in Westminster Hall - Wed 27 Mar 2019
Local Government Funding
"I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Colne Valley (Thelma Walker) on securing this debate at a critical time for our public finances.
I speak as a Member of Parliament for the great city of Glasgow, which has a fine tradition of what might be called municipal socialism. It …..."Paul Sweeney - View Speech
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Speech in Westminster Hall - Wed 27 Mar 2019
Local Government Funding
"I thank my hon. Friend for making that pertinent point, which goes to the heart of the issue of local government—structural decay over decades. Once, we had great, autonomous and highly vigorous municipal authorities. Look at Glasgow, which used to run its own gas and electricity provision, tramways, railway system …..."Paul Sweeney - View Speech
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Speech in Westminster Hall - Wed 27 Mar 2019
Local Government Funding
"I absolutely agree. Glasgow is in the absurd situation of having what must be the only car parking company in the world to lose money every year. There is not much of an overhead in running a car parking service, but as a result of the constraints on funding, and …..."Paul Sweeney - View Speech
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Written Question
Monday 28th January 2019
Asked by:
Paul Sweeney (Labour (Co-op) - Glasgow North East)
Question
to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what representations he has made to the Chancellor of the Exchequer on additional funding for local authority children’s social services.
Answered by Rishi Sunak
My Department works on a regular basis with the Her Majesty’s Treasury regarding funding for local government. This includes children’s services and I speak to colleagues at the Department for Education on this matter as well. At the last Autumn Budget, Government made available an additional £410 million to local authorities for spend on children’s and adult’s social care in the next year. Our Departments will continue to work closely together in the run-up to the next Spending Review.
Written Question
Monday 28th January 2019
Asked by:
Paul Sweeney (Labour (Co-op) - Glasgow North East)
Question
to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what recent assessment his Department has made of the effect of council tax rises on the living standards of low-income families.
Answered by Rishi Sunak
Council tax decisions are for local authorities to take having considered local circumstances. However, the Government has maintained referendum thresholds to give council tax-payers in England the right to veto excessive increases in a local referendum and council tax this year remains lower in real terms than in 2010. To assist those facing financial hardship, including those in receipt of low incomes, authorities in England are required to have locally designed council tax support schemes in place.
Written Question
Monday 28th January 2019
Asked by:
Paul Sweeney (Labour (Co-op) - Glasgow North East)
Question
to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to reduce mortality among homeless people.
Answered by Heather Wheeler
Every person who dies while they do not have a place to call home is one too many and we have a moral duty to act.
It should not happen that people die prematurely and on the street because they are homeless. Whilst we recognise that suitable housing is a key part of the solution, health services have a significant role to play, alongside other public services.
My Department is working with the Department of Health and Social Care to ensure that rough sleepers have the health care they need, when they need it. In its long-term plan, the National Health Service committed to investing up to £30 million extra on meeting the needs of rough sleepers. This will ensure that the parts of England most affected by rough sleeping have better access to specialist homelessness NHS mental health support, integrated into existing outreach services.
We are also ensuring that where a homeless person dies, or is seriously injured, Safeguarding Adult Reviews take place where appropriate, so that local services can learn lessons from these tragic events to better prevent them from happening in the future.
Speech in Commons Chamber - Thu 20 Dec 2018
Deaths of Homeless People
"On average, two people a week die while homeless in Scotland. The average life expectancy of a homeless person in Scotland is just 39. People sleeping on the streets in Scotland before they register as homeless is up 10% from 2016 to 2018. That shows the data picture is not …..."Paul Sweeney - View Speech
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Speech in Westminster Hall - Tue 24 Apr 2018
Street Homelessness
"The hon. Gentleman makes an interesting point about the trapped nature of many homeless people. I recently visited a homeless shelter in Glasgow and I discovered a vicious cycle for people who might get a job, but they cannot then secure it because they do not have a bank account, …..."Paul Sweeney - View Speech
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