Storm Eunice

Rachael Maskell Excerpts

Monday 21st February 2022 Commons Chamber

[Kwasi Kwarteng]

That is a crucial point. The effects of the storm clearly operate right across our economy. It is not just a power-distribution issue; flooding is a huge challenge. As a constituency MP with a Thames-side seat, I remember the flooding in 2013 and 2014. The Environment Agency and the water companies—Thames Water in my case—all have a responsibility to keep infrastructure in as fit and ready a state as possible, so that in future we have more resilience against such storms.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

Right now, York is flooding. We are particularly concerned about the Clementhorpe area and the area around Tower Street, where there are lots of businesses that are not able to benefit from the Flood Re scheme. Will the Secretary of State go back and look at insurance for businesses so that they do not perpetually lose out year after year?

[Kwasi Kwarteng]

The Under-Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, my hon. Friend the Member for Taunton Deane (Rebecca Pow), assures me that she and her team and colleagues in DEFRA are willing and eager to engage with the hon. Lady. My understanding is that the Foss barrier is working and has not been breached yet. I am hopeful that my DEFRA colleagues can engage with the hon. Lady on this extremely important issue.

North Sea Oil and Gas

Rachael Maskell Excerpts

Wednesday 9th February 2022 Commons Chamber

[Greg Hands]

The right hon. Gentleman has asked a probing question. I would say that we have both those obligations. We are obligated to take action on climate change and reducing emissions, and the UK is a world leader in that regard. We are also obligated to deliver energy, at an affordable price, to the people of this country. The £9.1 billion package of support that the Chancellor announced last week, with the £350 rebate on bills, was intended to do precisely that.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

The problem is that the Minister is still talking about 2050 when we have a crisis right now. It is clear that the Government refused to support a windfall tax on the energy companies so that they could invest in their oil and gas production, rather than the money going to our constituents who are struggling with their energy bills. That is not going to be settled, so may I ask the Minister why he will not impose a windfall tax on these companies so that they can contribute to the just transition and invest in green energy for the future?

[Greg Hands]

The Chancellor outlined the disadvantages of a windfall tax at the Dispatch Box last Thursday, when he said that it was “superficially appealing” but probably counterproductive. He also said that oil and gas companies were paying corporation tax at twice the rate paid by other companies, and that taxing UK activity on something that is traded globally would probably cost UK jobs and drive up the price of retail fuel, and would certainly make the UK less energy-secure.

Covid-19: Requirements for Employees to be Vaccinated

Rachael Maskell Excerpts

Monday 24th January 2022 Westminster Hall

[Martyn Day (Linlithgow and East Falkirk) (SNP)]

I beg to move,

That this House has considered e-petition 599841, relating to requirements for employees to be vaccinated against covid-19.

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Paisley. This might be one of the more interesting debates to emerge from the coronavirus pandemic. It has implications for health and business, and there are serious ethical questions.

The concept of mandatory vaccination is not new. Historically, children were required to be vaccinated against smallpox in the mid-19th century by the Vaccination Act 1853, which made it compulsory. Now, following on from mandatory vaccination for care home staff in England by 11 November, frontline health and social care workers in England will need to be fully vaccinated by 1 April, which means that they will need to have their first jag by 3 February.

Several countries have taken harsh stances on requiring vaccinations, such as Italy, which is requiring all over-50s in the workforce to be vaccinated. Given these recent developments, this is not some theoretical or abstract debate; it has considerable real-world implications for us here and now.

The petition was started by Ryan Karter. It has already gathered more than 175,000 signatures, and it still has several months to run until it closes on 1 May. The Government responded on 25 November, and I will comment on the response in due course. I am grateful to the creator and all those who have signed it, as the scale and speed with which it is being signed is a clear measure of the public interest in the issue.

The petition states:

“Make it illegal for any employer to mandate vaccination for its employees.”

At its heart is support for the principle of informed consent. In speaking to Ryan prior to this debate, he made me aware of several reasons he had for starting it, not least of which was the concern that mandatory vaccination for frontline health and social care workers will lead to a loss of workers, increase the pressures of staff shortages, and be unfair and disrespectful to essential workers. That is a theme I will expand on later.

Ryan also has concerns over vaccine safety, the evidence of their efficacy, and the failure of current policy to account for natural immunity to covid. The petition goes on:

“All British people should have the right to bodily autonomy and must never be coerced into receiving a medical intervention they may not want.”

That does not seem a particularly radical position to advocate, especially as the principle of consent is an important part of medical ethics and international human rights law. It is highlighted on the NHS website, which states:

“Consent to treatment means a person must give permission before they receive any type of medical treatment, test or examination.”

It adds,

“This must be done on the basis of an explanation by a clinician”,

and,

“Consent from a patient is needed regardless of the procedure”.

That is a position I find comforting and reassuring.

What do the UK Government say? In responding to the petition, the Government make a number of points. On the efficacy of vaccination, the response states:

“The vaccines are the best defence against Covid-19 and uptake of the Covid-19 vaccination has been very high across the UK. Vaccination reduces the likelihood of infection and therefore helps break chains of transmission.”

I assure the Minister that in that aspect he has my full support and agreement, and the weekly publishing of the covid-19 vaccine surveillance report evidences that fact. However, it should be noted that the reports state:

“Vaccine effectiveness against symptomatic disease with the Omicron variant is substantially lower than against the Delta variant, with rapid waning. However, protection against hospitalisation remains high, particularly after 3 doses.”

The Government’s response to the petition states:

“Government has identified limited high risk settings where there is strong public health rationale for making vaccination a condition of deployment. The Government has recently announced that health and social care services will need to ensure that workers who have direct face to face contact with service users have been fully vaccinated against Covid-19, following consultation.”

It should be mentioned that within the NHS there is an existing, long-standing precedent requiring vaccination against hepatitis B for those undertaking exposure-prone procedures due to the potential health risk involved. Having said that, the expansion of this position to cover covid-19 is on a very different scale.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

I am grateful to the hon. Member. Does he recognise that the requirement to have a hepatitis vaccination is only in the public heath green book? It is not mandatory in statute.

[Martyn Day]

I thank the hon. Member for making that very good point. As I say, it is on a very different scale. It also takes no account of the fact that vaccines do not prevent viral transmission or infection.

The Government’s response puts the position in England out of step with the other UK nations. It is probably the most contentious part of today’s debate, and it is where I find myself very strongly in agreement with the petitioners. By contrast, the Scottish Government have pursued an “educate and encourage” strategy in their vaccine roll-out—a strategy that has resulted in a higher vaccine uptake to date. In Scotland, the covid vaccine is entirely voluntary, and the Scottish Government have no plans to change this position for healthcare staff or anyone else. The Scottish approach advises companies to bring staff along with them and to encourage vaccination rather than require it.

I mentioned earlier the deadline of 3 February for NHS workers in England to have their first vaccination in England in order to become fully vaccinated by 1 April. This is imminent, and I believe there is an impending staffing crisis.

--- Later in debate ---

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

I thank all the petitioners, including 354 from my constituency of York Central, for enabling us to have this important and timely debate just days before legislation will mean that hundreds of thousands of NHS workers will lose their jobs. Before I begin, I must declare my interest as a former head of health at Unite and a senior clinician for 20 years, working in acute medicine.

The Government know that they have to withdraw the mandatory vaccination regulations. They have no choice. We are heading for such a serious NHS and social care crisis that no one will ever forget that the Tories broke the NHS and spun it into this unnecessary crisis, delaying operations and sacking vital NHS staff after all they have done to serve us, even at a time when they were very much forgotten. We are already around 100,000 staff down in the NHS. According to Government figures, another 88,000 people could be sacked if they are not vaccinated by 3 February. That is just days away. People are already having to hand in their notice. Many already have, which is putting pressure on our service.

If a Health Minister were present—I have to say that I am perplexed that one is not—they would know that the exodus of staff will not only seriously exacerbate the covid crisis but place incredible stress on the staff who have to remain, and therefore break them too. We already know about the very fragile mental health of the staff, who have been so traumatised by covid. As for social care, which is already unable to meet demand, the most vulnerable will be left without vital care. Delayed discharges will fill our hospitals, blocking the back door as well as the front door.

Just think: 115,000 staff who are in work today will be sacked—gone, no longer serving, in the dole queue. It is negligent and illiterate to not remove the regulations. I trust that Labour has also seen the light and understood the risk, and that it too will call for the immediate withdrawal of the regulations. Labour cannot be complicit in the sacking of hard-working health and care workers, or in bringing our NHS to its knees.

I want to make it clear that I want everyone to participate in the vaccine programme. Covid remains a killer disease. To date, 1.3 million have been left with debilitating symptoms of long covid. The public inquiry has never been more needed, with devastating mortality and infection rates—and excess deaths on top—in our country. We must get on top of that. More than 1,000 people are continuing to die each week. The Government’s inconsistency in their application of the public health measures is at the root of many of those deaths. It is a complete scandal.

However, it is also a complete scandal to sack our NHS and care staff. The foresight of scientists to embark on the development of the vaccine, with taxpayers’ money, and that being rolled out through the NHS, has saved so many lives. As the professional bodies in the NHS—such as the Royal College of General Practitioners and the Royal College of Nursing—say, the regulations must be withdrawn. As all of the NHS and social care trade unions say, the regulations must be withdrawn. I have talked to NHS and social care staff, and they are resolute that they will not be bullied into a vaccine. They have very real concerns, and they are resolute.

The NHS constitution, and the whole health system, is dependent on informed consent. The vaccine does not remove the risk of transmission or sickness. Government statistics sent to me by the Health Minister, the hon. Member for Erewash (Maggie Throup), state that vaccine efficacy depletion against omicron is reduced to between 40% to 50% in 10 weeks. It helps for now, but there is no long-term plan. By April, efficacy will be below 50%, which means that the risk of transmission remains unless other measures are taken. The Health Minister knows that we cannot keep vaccinating every eight to 10 weeks, but she has not produced a plan for what we will do next. Higher-grade PPE will help, and regular testing will of course make us safer, but what is the plan?

The Government recklessly removing all restrictions, as covid continues to rip through our communities, is placing lives at risk. At the same time, they will put more pressure on the NHS because people will be sacked. That is illiterate, inconsistent and dangerous.

Staff are intelligent; they have analysed the data and come to their own decisions. It is through support that they will make their final decisions. That is why that supportive conversation—with a health professional with the right competencies, rather than a manager—is essential. I trust that the Minister will move on that point too.

There have been 431,482 reports of vaccine side effects on the yellow card system, up to 5 January, so of course health professionals are analysing that data—that is what health professionals do. There is no longitudinal study about the impact on long-term fertility—why not? That is the reason why many women are not getting vaccinated. Many staff have had covid and have antibodies. Why did they get covid? It is because the Government failed to provide PPE in those early days. Remember that? The Government were not sacked, yet today they will sack NHS staff. Well, I say no.

It is time to climb down, withdraw the regulations and respect our exhausted, stressed and traumatised NHS and care staff. It is time to work with them, not against them. It is time to say sorry for putting them under such pressure through these regulations. It is time to withdraw.

--- Later in debate ---

[Paul Scully]

My economic argument was not specifically about the NHS. It was about the fact that vaccines are the way out of this, to get back to a sense of normality—a new normal, whatever that normal is—and allow people to protect businesses, livelihoods and jobs around the country as best we can. Clearly, the best way to work with the NHS is to make sure we can work with those who are unvaccinated to get them vaccinated and, eventually, boosted.

[Rachael Maskell]

I want to come back to the response I had from the Under-Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, the hon. Member for Erewash, to a parliamentary question I tabled. It said that after 10 weeks the efficacy of the vaccine against omicron is depleted to between 40% and 50%. That clearly means that, first of all, the vaccine does not give us the protection that we would hope it would give; secondly, it does not give us protection against transmissibility. How can the Minister make the statement that the vaccine is the best way out of the virus when, in 10 weeks’ time, it clearly will not be?

[Paul Scully]

Preliminary evidence about the effectiveness of the vaccination against the omicron variant is still emerging, with data suggesting that vaccine effectiveness against symptomatic infection and hospitalisation both rise after a booster and, in the case of the latter, goes up to 88%.

For most people, whether to get vaccinated is a matter of personal choice, but there are some high-risk settings in which we believe it is proportionate to take further steps to protect the most vulnerable. Throughout the pandemic, the overriding concern for the Government, the NHS and the care sector has been to protect the workforce and patients. People working in health and care look after some of the most vulnerable in our society, and therefore carry a unique responsibility. Everybody working in health and social care with vulnerable people would accept a first responsibility to avoid preventable harm to the people they are caring for. That is why, following consultation, regulations were approved last year in the House that meant that from 11 November 2021, all people entering a care home needed to prove their covid-19 vaccination status, subject to certain exemptions. Following further consultations, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care announced that anyone working in health or wider social care activities regulated by the Care Quality Commission would need to be vaccinated against covid-19. That includes NHS hospitals, independent hospitals, and GP and dental practices, regardless of whether a provider is public or private.

That policy has two key exemptions: for those who do not have face-to-face contact with patients, and for those who—as we have heard—have not had a vaccination because they are medically exempt. Uptake of the vaccine among staff working in those settings over the past few months has been promising. Since the Government consulted on the policy in September, the proportion of NHS trust healthcare workers vaccinated with a first dose has increased from 92% to 95%—an increase of nearly 100,000 people.

Oral Answers to Questions

Rachael Maskell Excerpts

Tuesday 11th January 2022 Commons Chamber

[George Freeman]

I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman for raising that issue. With Queen’s University Belfast and the Randox cluster, Northern Ireland is a powerhouse in life sciences and both the Secretary of State and I have been to visit. I am delighted that the hon. Gentleman has made that point and will make sure that the Northern Ireland cluster is powerfully at the heart of our innovation strategy.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

In York, we want to maintain momentum around the BioYorkshire project—York’s green new deal—so will the Minister set out when the project can apply for funding under the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council funding regime?

BioYorkshire and the Bio-Economy

Rachael Maskell Excerpts

Monday 22nd November 2021 Commons Chamber

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

COP26 started a conversation that should have taken place decades previously. It did not end where our fragile planet demanded, but, with 1.5° now in critical care, it failed to grasp the scale of the crisis and it fell short of the demands required to safeguard against our planet burning, melting, flooding and people dying.

COP’s failure must be our call to revive the hope that our planet demands more acutely than ever before and that the global south depends on. It starts here.

COP26 said there is no time for delay, no time to prevaricate or put off, no time to postpone. When opportunity comes to accelerate our path to net zero, to cut carbon, to protect biodiversity, to end the plastic endemic, to enable a carbon negative future and to put investment in sustainability, it must be grasped. Delay has been our failure. To take action is our hope.

Madam Deputy Speaker, I am so grateful to you for allowing this debate tonight, on the heels of COP26—at the start of this new conversation, to give hope to our planet and to give hope to generations to come. Delay and prevarication are behind us; that era is over. The talking is done. The action is needed.

Tonight, that action is to institute BioYorkshire. As the CBI has said today, this is the very kind of project that the Government must invest in. I am expecting commitment from the Minister, I am expecting Government to realise the opportunity, and I am expecting investment in BioYorkshire and the biosciences. BioYorkshire is Yorkshire’s green new deal. It has been developed over the past two years, was seeded from years of research and applied application, and is already demonstrating the power of its science. It is a green industrial revolution waiting to scale up and level up.

BioYorkshire will place not only York and Yorkshire at the heart of the UK biosciences economy, but the UK at the heart of the global bio-economy. Its ambition is for domestic transition, but its power is in global mitigation. It will demonstrate how investment in biotechnology is hugely beneficial for our own economy, and on a global scale will give us new tools through which to drive international markets and international development. While the climate crisis drives our world apart and accelerates inequality, a just transition draws us together and demands equality: a time when global north reaches out to global south with the solutions they need to build their futures as we transition ours; and when we quicken the move to clean energy as we leave fossil fuels to rest in their carbon seams.

Let me set out the deal. BioYorkshire is a partnership of public and private. It is led by the University of York and is already delivering outstanding bioscience research with real-world impact of nature-based solutions. It is joined by Askham Bryan College—York’s agricultural college—and Fera Science Ltd. Its partners are then drawn from the food sector, the agricultural sector, digital and science, and the fuel, chemical and material industries. It will drive productivity and sustainability together across these footprints, developing new technologies, and will be at the heart of many world-first breakthroughs in science across the agricultural and chemicals sectors: developing bio-packaging; mitigating methane; using insect and hemp-based technologies in agriculture and materials; upcycling and recycling. It will see the replacement of household waste, petrochemicals and fossil fuels with a new generation of bio-based products—cutting carbon, cutting waste and cutting climate challenges.

Yorkshire’s ambition to be net zero by 2038, as set out in the Yorkshire and Humber climate action plan, and for North Yorkshire to be the first carbon negative region, will rest on BioYorkshire being given the power to deliver. It will use world-class science and local expertise to turn lab technologies to fully scaled-up applications to deliver profitable, bio-based production of chemicals, materials and fuels, and enable productive, net zero food, feed, farming and wider land use practices.

As science and agricultural communities, and the food and tech sectors, look to BioYorkshire to inspire their futures, I say to the Government: if ever there was a project that could seed its levelling-up agenda in the region, BioYorkshire will deliver. This is where the power to the future economy sits. In its first phase, it will deliver 4,000 good-quality green collar jobs: engineers, biologists, agronomists, food technologists, chemists, natural capital economists, and robotic and digital experts—jobs so needed in the region. It will reskill and upskill 25,000 people, preparing them for a bright future in the green economy.

It does not end there. As the Minister will know, such well-prepared projects seed inward investment, attract global investment into centres of innovation, and therefore centre the bio-economy, bringing even greater green growth. From the Humber estuary to the farmlands of North Yorkshire, they are already committed to the project as it reaches out across Yorkshire, south and west. Such innovation will of course attract world-class scientists to our region who will further accelerate climate solutions under the British flag. It will be the place where future scientific leaders in the global south will want to study to bring adaptation to their troubled land.

Springing from this first phase of BioYorkshire is the ambition to grow a network of specialised business incubators, training and skills, and entrepreneurial support to create and grow companies to commercially produce industrial and consumer products. BioYorkshire comprises three linked elements that combine to support innovation from concept to research to commercial reality. First, BioYorkshire’s innovation central will comprise world-leading science infrastructure and training for bio-economy entrepreneurs and innovators, including globally recognised research institutes. It will scale up opportunity and embed demonstrator facilities, including bio-economy skills and training centres, bringing researchers and businesses together to maximise opportunities for interaction and co-production. Secondly, BioYorkshire’s district incubator hubs located in urban, coastal and rural areas of York and North Yorkshire will link local bio-economy start-ups and business scale-ups with innovation and skills central, further seeding innovation. Thirdly, the BioYorkshire accelerator will provide advice, expertise, networks and promotional opportunities for businesses across the region, accelerating innovations from development to commercialisation.

From the investment the Government make—and I know the Minister will want to work with me and the partners to accelerate this—his colleagues in the Treasury will see around £1.4 billion gross value added within the Yorkshire region alone. As for our planet, in the UK, 2.8 million tonnes of carbon will disappear in emissions annually and landfill waste will be cut by 1.2 million tonnes, growing as technology is scaled. But York is not holding on to this opportunity; already reaching across Yorkshire, it is now extending to the industrial clusters of Humberside, Teesside and the north. It is truly a Northern powerhouse, but that power rests in the transition of our technology to not harm our planet as it once did, but to heal it.

The Minister will know that York is the gateway to the north, located equidistantly between the heart of Scotland’s scientific hub in Edinburgh and the power of the City of London, with just about the best-connected rail links the UK can boast. Adjacent, to the back of York station, lies Europe’s largest brownfield site, York Central. I know that the Government have much interest in the potential of this site. At this power point, BioYorkshire’s heart will beat, but its connectivity means that it will fast reach out to the region and nation. BioYorkshire is the bridge between the green new deal and levelling up. It has the reach, the connection—physical and digital; local and global—and the ambition.

Universities and colleges in partnerships with industry, science and research are at the very centre of shifting the dial for our future economy and sustaining our planet. The UK’s economic and skills future depends on the opportunities that research and development generate, drawing on the talents of workforces of today and tomorrow. It will be these skills that will innovate and accelerate economic renewal. This energised generation of young people will take on the old economic model of want and will supplant it with one of restoration of our planet. The demand for these jobs will be high, the opportunities over the next decade essential, if we are going to sustain a habitable planet and mitigate our past failings. BioYorkshire will accelerate this crucial transition and economic renewal through engaging businesses large and small to collaborate in research and development, to start and scale up new enterprises, and to work with schools, colleges and employers to nurture the talent the labour force needs across all skill levels.

This is why I am so committed to delivering BioYorkshire. While everyone will say that York is a lovely place, and it is, if they look beyond the walls, they will see a generation whose industrial past has been stripped away, pride in place taken and skills supplanted by the insecure job market. I see my constituents struggle day by day. The de-industrialisation of York has been bitter and cruel. Its consequences: abject poverty, inadequate housing and inequality. This is why BioYorkshire means so much. It will inject skills, jobs and hope. It lights the dark recesses of York’s past and enables my constituents to renew their pride as they renew our planet. It is why I am on my feet today and why I am here in this place at all. Green-collar jobs really matter to my city of York. Our history, through the Rowntree revolution, laid the foundations for high ethical standards in work. Today, BioYorkshire marks the start of high ethical regeneration in our generation.

The Minister will be very alert to the innovation that Fera Science has driven from precision farming to cut the use of fertilisers to crop-resistant technologies. Domestically and globally, it has vastly advanced productivity and accelerated opportunity. As the climate heats, it will be the research from Fera Science’s partnership that will enable communities in the global south to be fed, to defeat infestations and crop disease and to resist scorching temperatures and flooded land. Askham Bryan College is at the cutting edge of digital farm technology, training young farmers to sustain their futures and sustain our planet.

The race for our planet is ultimately a moral pursuit. The industrial past which exploited this Earth’s assets, minerals and humans to generate wealth has now handed us the task of reparation. The consequences of failure are devastating; the responsibility weighs heavy. We cannot delay, Minister. We have to heal those scars, save those lives and repair this planet. I know the Minister understands; I know he will do all in his power to act.

A year ago, in response to my question at Prime Minister’s questions, the Prime Minister showed his support for BioYorkshire, recognising how it should benefit from his 10-point plan for a green industrial revolution. He said:

“I hope very much that BioYorkshire will be among the beneficiaries, and I cannot see any reason why it should not be.”—[Official Report, 25 November 2020; Vol. 684, c. 823.]

With the Prime Minister’s backing, the Government are already recognising the acceleration for BioYorkshire to be achieved through the North Yorkshire devolution deal, and I know that Departments such as the Minister’s, the Cabinet Office, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and the Department for Education are already showing significant interest. We need action. The pain of COP tells us that we are still in this race against time; there can be no delay.

Will the Minister first make it his priority to come to York to meet the partners? I know that he will be keen to do so. Secondly, will he agree to make BioYorkshire one of his Government’s flagship projects and bring forward the full funding now, so that scaling can commence without delay? To have such a well-developed project could help accelerate the success of the Government’s 10-point plan and bring a crucial offering to COP27.

Commitment to funding is crucial. Partners are committed to multiplying its return. The price of this phase is just £171 million. The Prime Minister has said that BioYorkshire should be a beneficiary. The central economic forecast is that BioYorkshire will deliver a return on Government investment of 8.3 to 1. That far outstrips most of the Government’s infrastructure investments, as the Minister will know.

With COP26 done, the world is watching. Science, economy and ethics are yearning. The Prime Minister talks about a green industrial revolution; BioYorkshire is ready to lead that revolution. The Prime Minister talks about levelling up; BioYorkshire could deliver sustainable jobs and investment to the north right now. The Prime Minister said he would fund BioYorkshire. Will he keep that promise? The Government must see the opportunity, hear the need and feel the urgency to invest in Yorkshire’s green new deal. We cannot afford to delay.

Fireworks: Sale and Use

Rachael Maskell Excerpts

Monday 8th November 2021 Westminster Hall

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

It was in 1605 that my former constituent, Mr Guy Fawkes, came to this place to misuse fireworks. That is why I am making a speech today to call for an end to that practice. Not only have many of my constituents written to me, including veterans, families who have experienced autism and other mental health conditions, and animal lovers, but 714 of my constituents signed the petition, calling for fireworks to be used only in properly licensed public displays.

We have to remember that at this time of year our precious NHS, which is overstretched, sees about 2,000 injuries arriving through its doors, 600 of those affecting children, and deals with about 35 inquiries about burns in relation to both Diwali and bonfire night. Our public servants are often a target for people who misuse fireworks. Indeed, only three years ago, I was cycling home from Parliament when young people who were playing with fireworks threw one at me. It was only because I reacted in nanoseconds, slamming on my brakes, that it missed me. If it had hit—it exploded as it hit the ground —who knows what the history would have been?

Every year, cycling on that section of my route, I fear what could happen. That brought home how serious the issue is, so we absolutely have to protect the public. When I called the police, they told me that an incident had previously occurred on the very same spot that night, but they did not have time to attend, which highlights the reasons why legislation needs to be introduced from the top—from the Minister—to change the fortunes of others.

[Naz Shah]

Does my hon. Friend agree that it is disturbing that people who sell alcohol and cigarettes have to be fit and proper, but there is no licensing in this field? In Bradford, there is certainly a problem with the sale of fireworks to underage children.

[Rachael Maskell]

My hon. Friend comes on to the point of the debate: fireworks are easily accessible in supermarkets and other shops, which is why we need a comprehensive ban. If people want to enjoy a firework display, such as one put on by the local authority or fire services, that is a better use of public money, as there are fewer call-outs, which require the involvement of the NHS and other emergency services. Those displays can bring communities together, as opposed to what fireworks are now doing—pushing communities apart.

We have heard about fear factors, which are real and live for many families, so I urge the Minister to tackle the problem. We should not come here year after year, voicing the pleas in the letters that we receive time and again from our constituents. This should be the year the Minister goes back to the Government and acts on our call, and on the call of more than 300,000 petitioners, who are saying that things must change. We must not forget the silent animals, who do not have an opportunity to make representations, but who no doubt experience that fear. This nightmare time of year should be one of pleasure for families, instead of one of dread. I trust that the Minister will act swiftly and engage with banning the sale of fireworks by ordinary members of the public.

[Derek Twigg (in the Chair)]

Before I call the SNP spokesman, may I tell Members that I expect to call the Minister at about 5.40 pm? I call Patricia Gibson.

--- Later in debate ---

[Paul Scully]

The hon. Lady raises an interesting point, which I will take away and look at. I think that a licence can be easily revoked if the person holding it is not fit and proper, but she is right: the licence does not specifically say that, as far as I understand it. Those licences are given for a reason—to try to avoid those inappropriate sales—but that is something we can certainly reflect on.

The police, local authorities, and other local agencies have a range of tools and powers that they can use to respond quickly and effectively to antisocial behaviour, including the antisocial use of fireworks, through the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014. Local areas can decide how best to deploy the powers in the 2014 Act depending on the specific circumstances.

[Rachael Maskell]

The example from my personal circumstances showed the Minister that the Act is completely ineffective, and therefore people are being put at risk every single day from fireworks being lobbed by young people who should not possess them. Will he not recognise that the structures that are in place do not work, and therefore put proper enforcement in place?

[Paul Scully]

We are never going to get a perfect situation. It was terrible to hear what the hon. Lady faced. One Member talked about the Republic of Ireland having tougher restrictions than we do, and it was terrible that only last month a lady in Galway had a firework fired into her face. Even with those tougher restrictions, there is no perfect situation, but we need to take an evidence-based, careful, proportionate approach. As I say, there is always more we can reflect on, but local police are best placed to understand what is driving the behaviour in question and the impact it is having, and to determine the most appropriate response.

Income Tax (Charge)

Rachael Maskell Excerpts

Thursday 28th October 2021 Commons Chamber

[Kwasi Kwarteng]

I gently suggest that the hon. Member looks at the work of the Jet Zero Council, which my right hon. Friend the Chancellor and I have been pushing. We want the UK to be the head of very low carbon emission flying. I am very enthusiastic about that. We will be leaders in that technology, and I do not think it makes sense simply to penalise and turn our backs on aviation. We should be trying to enhance aviation and decarbonise it, and that is exactly what we intend to do.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

Will the Secretary of State give way?

[Kwasi Kwarteng]

I have to make progress. I know that hon. Members are springing up and down because they wish to make interventions, but I am sure they will be making speeches later in the debate.

We on the Government Benches understand what has sadly eluded the grasp of Opposition Members: we must create competition. We must back business and incentivise innovation in a free-market economy, not go back to a state-run, Soviet-style command economy.

The Labour party manifesto has been mentioned. I remember reading it. Like the right hon. Member for Doncaster North, I am somewhat of an insomniac—more so now, I dare say—so sometimes I have to read lots of these things. It said that we should get to net zero by 2030. As my hon. Friend the Member for Crewe and Nantwich (Dr Mullan) observed, even the unions that Labour is supposed to represent and that bankrolled it, rejected that proposal as completely unrealistic and destructive to our economy. That manifesto said not only that we should get to net zero by 2030, which is completely unrealistic, but that the state would own 51% of offshore wind farms. Imagine that. The right hon. Member for Hayes and Harlington (John McDonnell) said that, as Chancellor, he would nationalise 51% of offshore wind. I remember speaking to the industry, and it said, “Why on earth would we want to own 49% of what the right hon. Member for Hayes and Harlington owns 51%?” It was a completely absurd and unrealistic policy. On the green agenda and the net zero agenda, the Government have far more to offer the country than a souped-up, half-heated, Soviet-style approach to solving what is a fundamentally difficult problem.

For one year—so far—businesses in the retail, hospitality and leisure sectors will get a 50% discount on business rates. That is why my right hon. Friend the Chancellor decided that the business rates system should be more responsive and agile, with more frequent revaluations taking place every three years. That is a good, positive step that will give much more flexibility to the system.

I am also delighted to reflect on how the Budget told a great story about innovation. Innovation is a huge driver of productivity and progress, and unleashing innovation is a fundamental duty for my Department and for me as Secretary of State. We have launched Help to Grow, which will drive small and medium-sized enterprise productivity. We have also started a new co-investment venture capital fund that will be used to drive innovation and provide scale-up capital for businesses in need of that. The Budget confirms the eligibility criteria for our new scale-up visa, which all businesses I speak to, and small businesses in particular, say they need help in pursuing. We will unlock greater private sector innovation. We are reforming research and development tax reliefs to support modern research methods and to focus our minds specifically on the problem and challenge of innovation. Increasing R&D investment to £22 billion will confirm the UK as a science and technology superpower. We must make sure our small businesses, which after all are the heart of the British economy, have the support they need, which is why my right hon. Friend the Chancellor strengthened the British Business Bank in yesterday’s Budget, increasing its regional financing programmes to £1.6 billion and expanding its coverage, helping innovative businesses across the country get greater access to the finance that they need.

--- Later in debate ---

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

Thank you for calling me in this important debate, Mr Deputy Speaker. As ever, it is a real honour to follow my hon. Friend the Member for Easington (Grahame Morris), who spoke so eloquently about cancer. In the Budget, there was not a word about the call from the Association of Medical Research Charities to have a medical research charity partnership fund to fund vital medical research. Charities have been so hard hit during the pandemic, yet there was not a whisper from the Government yesterday.

The people and the planet will pay for yesterday’s Budget. While the Chancellor’s job is to positively spin each announcement, it is what is not said that exposes the economic reality and fragility. We must remind ourselves, after more than a decade of economic regression, that we are in this place because of the mismanagement of the pandemic. The Government were ill-prepared, despite warnings. They ignored those warnings, then were slow to act.

Inflation rises are costly, and they hit the poorest hardest. The Office for Budget Responsibility predicts that inflation could rise to 5% or even more. Inflation will really hit the poorest people in our constituencies, with energy, food and housing costs soaring. That will mean that family budgets will rapidly move into the red because of the contents of the Chancellor’s red box. Inflation will mean that many more families will visit one of York’s 16 food banks, 15 of which are in my constituency, and that many more will go without. That process will be accelerated for those who have just had £20 a week stripped from their working tax and universal credit payments, including 7,850 people in my constituency, at a time when the Government have also announced increases in national insurance contributions. Those in my constituency are living in a place where house prices and rents are rising more sharply than just about anywhere else in the UK. That £20 cut embeds inequality and injustice, yet the proposals from Government keep driving inequality through housing. There was not a word yesterday about how to fix that or the homes that people live in, so many of which are damp and overcrowded, with families struggling in them.

While York’s Poverty Truth Commission will unveil the depth of this crisis, the Chancellor failed to bring fresh thinking to his Budget. A wealth tax, as many in business now call for, would have seen redistribution and been a first step to tackling entrenched disparity. With York as one of the most inequitable cities in the UK, we need to see that change.

While underemployment and underpay in York make living there more expensive than most places in the country, the relief for the hospitality sector will act as a sticking plaster to address some of the issues that it is facing, yet not all. Staff shortages are pressing down on the hospitality sector and making many businesses so unviable that they can open for only a few days a week—we see the notices going up in their windows. What was missing yesterday was how we are going to not only address that issue, but transition to secure and better jobs for our future economy. Of course any wage rise helps, but when the pressures are escalating disproportionately on the least well off, a £10 minimum wage was needed as a starter. As the Labour conference determined, it should rapidly rise to £15 an hour.

When we talk about the current staff recruitment challenges, we need to understand the pressure that is putting on our private sector businesses and our public sector. For example, there is a deficit in people providing the care services that are vital to address some of the challenges facing the wider NHS. If we cannot care for people in our communities, we need the Government to step in, yet we heard no response from the Chancellor yesterday as to how that crisis will be addressed.

On business rates, we again saw sticking plasters coming out of the Chancellor’s pockets to cover the wound, but there is still a gaping hole and we need more innovation to address those rates. A property related tax belongs to a different era. As the hon. Member for Harrogate and Knaresborough (Andrew Jones), who is no longer in his place, said, we cannot have an analogue tax in a digital economy. That is why we need reform. I have talked to businesses in my constituency, 65% of which are independent and innovative in what they are doing. They are calling for a tax that looks at profit and turnover to address their contribution proportionately. We need to address those issues because, time and again, we have seen offshore landlords not paying attention to what is happening on our high streets. It is about time that they were held accountable.

Most seriously, the Chancellor’s silence on support for local authorities to run good local services was telling. Our City of York Council’s leader has squandered public funds on pay-offs, but my constituents should not pay a heavy price. They deserve decent services, but the Chancellor failed to say how they will be provided without cuts and rises in council tax. For example, how will the cost of repairs be met for schools such as All Saints Roman Catholic School, which desperately needs a new school estate, or Tang Hall Primary School, which is so cold in winter that children wear hoodies to keep warm? That is the reality facing us, and it has to change.

There are other issues, such as the Sure Start programme. Yesterday, we heard a big brag from the Government about putting £500 million into 150 new family hubs, but we must remind ourselves that £974 million and 1,400 Sure Starts have been cut, which means that, for many years, many families did not get the support that they had had. On family hubs, the voluntary sector is expected to be a partner, but again that sector is really struggling and there was nothing from the Chancellor.

Although, obviously, I welcome the reannouncement of the funding for the National Railway Museum, as I have welcomed it each time the Chancellor has mentioned it, we need more investment in our city. That is why I was disappointed that York’s response to the green new deal, BioYorkshire, did not get a mention yesterday. It would bring forward, ahead of COP26, a proper green new deal and transition, as well as vital regeneration and crucial jobs for the future to my city.

As our planet continues to melt and burn and flood, the Chancellor failed to mention its fate. Holding down road and air travel costs will only accelerate its demise, not stem it. In just five years’ time, the UK will have spent its carbon budget. The Budget made the wrong calls. We just do not have time on our side, yet the Chancellor did not address that crisis. I am perplexed as to why, when the economic Budget is announced, the carbon budget is not addressed at the same time. They should be addressed together, hand in glove.

As the Chancellor stalls on funding for the poorest on our planet by suppressing overseas development aid until 2024-25, he also suppresses the green transition they need to make. Famine and droughts, conflicts and floods are forcing 80 million people to leave their homes and land to eat and live. Opposition Members cannot cheer the Chancellor with his veil of optimism, because we know that our constituents are not fooled. They see the trail of devastation that the Government are leaving for Labour one day to mop up. The Chancellor who said he would do “whatever it takes” left 3 million people stranded during the covid crisis. Yesterday, he abandoned not just the people but our precious planet.

Post Office Closures

Rachael Maskell Excerpts

Tuesday 19th October 2021 Westminster Hall

[Marion Fellows]

Absolutely. I thank the hon. Lady for intervening. Her constituency was one of the most affected by the SPAR closures in Scotland, to which I will refer later, as well as outreach services.

It is devastating for everyone when a branch is closed, especially when it happens in a rural community where the post office may be not only the last shop in the village but also the last bank.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

I am really grateful for all the hon. Lady does on behalf of post offices. In York, in my short time in Parliament, we have lost post offices in Acomb and Tang Hall, we have lost two in Clifton and we have lost our Crown post office—it is now placed in a WH Smith, which is far more inaccessible than it was previously. Does she agree that, before any post office closure, there should be a community consultation about how that estate could be repurposed as a community service?

[Marion Fellows]

Absolutely. I know how hard the hon. Lady has worked for her constituents in York and with regard to the Crown post office closure there.

Post offices support local businesses. Half of those who started selling online during the pandemic have used the post office to post items, while three in four marketplace sellers say that if their local post office were to close, it would become difficult to send items to their customers. In my constituency of Motherwell and Wishaw, communities have experienced both temporary and permanent closures, notably the permanent closure of the Brandon Street Crown branch in Motherwell town centre. Sadly, many Crown branches have been closed—decisions typically opposed by the communities affected. Unlike smaller branches, Crown post offices offered a wide range of services, which made them service hubs at the heart of communities.

[Marion Fellows]

I thank the hon. Member for her intervention. I, too, visited Cambuslang a number of months ago, and it is a great initiative. The local community council fought hard for that pilot, and it was doing great work. I think there is a way forward through that kind of initiative, which again I will come on to.

There are multiple reasons for branch closures, but at the root of many of them is the issue of sub-postmaster remuneration. Post Office Ltd must agree a fair deal with sub-postmasters. The Horizon scandal has undoubtedly damaged the relationship between Post Office Ltd and sub-postmasters and staff, and the ongoing work to repair that relationship must continue. Now more than ever, it is essential that sub-postmasters are properly remunerated. Many of the sub-postmasters I have spoken to have said that they have handed in their keys because they simply cannot afford to live on the income they make from running a post office. Some sub-postmasters have even reported that they have been earning less than the minimum wage.

That is simply not good enough. Citizens Advice has found that the number of temporarily closed branches has doubled since 2013, and that two in three remain closed for over a year and two in five for over two years. Poor remuneration is not just forcing sub-postmasters to retire or postpone retirement; it is preventing a new generation from taking up the role, as they see no value in it. The UK Government must provide the funding, and Post Office Ltd must agree to guarantee a minimum income for every sub-postmaster so that their hard work pays off and running a post office can be an attractive opportunity.

Another reason for concern is the over-reliance on franchise postmasters—not independent sub-postmasters, I hasten to add, but large retail chains. Only this year, SPAR announced the closure of 31 of its 48 Scottish counters. If a larger retail partner were to go into administration or decide that having a post office counter was not worth their while, that could leave hundreds of communities without a local branch. I fear that Post Office Ltd is fighting a losing battle with large franchisees and putting all its eggs in one basket to meet the national access criteria. CJ Lang has said that it made more money from putting a Costa machine into a branch than it did from running a post office. That is an outstanding critique of what is wrong with the post office network at the moment. Can the Minister outline what the Government’s contingency plans are in the event that a large partner decides to close its branches, or close altogether? It is not just up to Post Office Ltd to sort this issue out.

As banks leave high streets and town centres, post offices are filling the gap. Over 4,300 bank branches and building societies have closed since 2015—over a third of the entire network. In fact, post office branches now represent 60% of all the UK’s branch-based cash access points. Banking and access to cash must therefore be part of the long-term vision for the network. In September, Post Office Ltd announced that it had taken in £2.9 billion of deposits, with that figure expected to rise to over £3 billion this month. Many local businesses are using post office branches to make deposits, and others who rely on cash are using those branches for withdrawals. As post offices take on a greater financial role, the security of branches and staff must be reviewed. In my discussions with sub-postmasters, they have raised concerns about security. I hope that the Minister will elaborate on what steps he has taken and what discussions he has had, or will have, with Post Office Ltd on the issue of branch security.

[Rachael Maskell]

I am grateful to the hon. Lady for being so generous. When a company in the rail industry cannot operate, an operator of last resort is backed by the Government. To maintain these community assets, surely we need a model whereby the Government step in; and would that not also be a step towards what is really needed, which is to look at nationalising the Post Office, which we know our communities really do want?

[Marion Fellows]

I thank the hon. Lady for her intervention; again, she hits the nail right on the head. I welcome the pilot of the post office banking hubs. However, I am aware that many sub-postmasters are concerned about the impact they will have on existing branches, and I share their concerns. We cannot have branches in competition with and cannibalising each other. The full impact on existing branches must be watched closely.

However, I give full support to the private Member’s Bill in the name of the hon. Member for North Norfolk (Duncan Baker), who unfortunately cannot be here today. It aims to establish in law that major banks will be obligated to provide banking services through local post office branches.

Banks have been let off the hook. They are abandoning town centres, villages and customers. Not only should banks be mandated to provide their services through post offices via the banking framework, they must be made to pay for the outreach and banking services that the post office network provides. At present, many sub-postmasters are subsidising the running of these services. That cannot be allowed to continue. Will the Minister confirm today that the Government will back the Bill from the hon. Member for North Norfolk and, if not, what alternatives will be put in place?

Post offices are just one means of accessing cash, and losing a bank branch can make it much more difficult for people to access cash. The UK Government previously committed to an access to cash Bill, which has not yet been forthcoming. We are hurtling towards a cashless society, which will undoubtedly impact the most vulnerable people. Measured action is needed so that cash can be available free of charge to those who prefer it. Can the Minister confirm whether it is still the Government’s intention to introduce a Bill in the coming parliamentary term?

I understand that some of this is under the auspices of the Treasury, but we cannot keep passing the buck and going backwards and forwards, nor can we have the silo mentality whereby one Government Department is responsible for the money to post offices and the Minister has to say, “Well, it’s not my job, it’s the Treasury.” We need joined-up thinking on this.

The Post Office has massive potential to provide not just banking services, but a range of services. The UK Government have previously committed to making post offices the front office of Government. With over 11,500 branches across these islands, they are perfectly placed to be that, but the UK Government have pulled service after service from the network, most notably the Post Office card account. One million people used a POCA in 2019 and this has fallen since the forced migration of recipients to bank accounts.

However, for many, a bank account is still out of reach. It is also an additional and unnecessary hoop for people to jump through to receive their benefit payments or pensions. It makes no sense that when banks are leaving and post offices remain, a greater emphasis would be put on banking.

Other services, such as biometric enrolment and HMRC payments, have also been removed. Whenever the UK Government remove a service, that means less income for the post office network and its sub-postmasters, which makes closures more likely. The income derived from these services can be small, but proves how important it is to encourage people to use their post office services.

The Minister has heard me speak many times on post offices, as has everyone else in this Chamber. That is because they are an important service that people across the UK recognise, use, value and need. It is vital that the post office network continues in spite of the difficulties that Horizon has forced on to Post Office Ltd. I appreciate that the Government have given money, but I and many others are concerned that the situation will lead in the end to a diminution of post office services. I plead with and urge the Minister to make sure that the post office network continues, grows and thrives, and that those who run post offices on our behalf are suitably recompensed.

Net Zero Strategy and Heat and Buildings Strategy

Rachael Maskell Excerpts

Tuesday 19th October 2021 Commons Chamber

[Greg Hands]

I am absolutely committed to that. My BEIS colleagues who look after research and development are absolutely committed to making sure that British ceramics are not sold short when it comes to R&D. We have a huge commitment to the sector overall, which my hon. Friend will know from the many years that we have worked together, particularly on trade issues as they affect the ceramics sector, including trying to break down trade barriers to make sure not only that our industry flourishes here in the UK, but that our exports do as well. I commend the work that he and all of the Stoke Conservative MPs have been doing for the sector for some years now.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

Missing from the plan is the retrofit skills strategy. The City of York Council has a backlog of more than 6,000 maintenance and retrofit jobs to do. How does the Minister expect those skills to come forward and how will people be trained? Why has he left it so late to upskill the workforce?

[Greg Hands]

I agree with some of the points that the hon. Lady makes about the importance of skills, but I do not think that it is about our delivering the message late. This Government’s commitment to skills and to reskilling if necessary has been absolutely clear. It can be seen right the way across Government in the very close work being done together by BEIS and the Department for Education. I see it in so many sectors. I will mention again my visit to Aberdeen last week. I appreciate that Aberdeen is some distance from her constituency, but the sector there has to be able to reskill a lot of people from offshore oil and gas to offshore wind. It is that kind of thing that we need to see on a transition and a long-term basis. It is exactly this idea of making sure that we can retrain and reclassify people from today’s skills to fit the skills for tomorrow. That is absolutely part of our commitment.

Gas Prices and Energy Suppliers

Rachael Maskell Excerpts

Thursday 23rd September 2021 Commons Chamber

[Kwasi Kwarteng]

Any Labour plan to nationalise the industry would be a step back into the dark ages and would be a disaster for this country’s reputation as a hub of international capital and investment.

[Rachael Maskell (York Central) (Lab/Co-op)]

Rising energy prices will disproportionately affect people living in the north, where it is colder during the winter. What assessment has the Secretary of State made of regional disparities, and how will he mitigate against them?