Oral Answers to Questions

Tristan Osborne Excerpts

Wednesday 4th March 2026 Commons Chamber

[Peter Swallow (Bracknell) (Lab)]

2. What recent discussions she has had with Cabinet colleagues on increasing economic growth in Wales.

[Tristan Osborne (Chatham and Aylesford) (Lab)]

8. What recent discussions she has had with Cabinet colleagues on increasing economic growth in Wales.

[Katrina Murray (Cumbernauld and Kirkintilloch) (Lab)]

11. What recent discussions she has had with Cabinet colleagues on increasing economic growth in Wales.

--- Later in debate ---

[Jo Stevens]

I was pleased to announce last month that this Government plan to devolve powers to the Welsh Government to introduce a vacant land tax, subject to consultation. This will help the Welsh Government to encourage even more house building, fuelling construction jobs and economic growth, and it is a perfect example of how this Labour Government approach enhancing devolution. We will never miss an opportunity to enhance devolution in ways that make a practical and positive difference to the people and economy of Wales.

[Tristan Osborne]

It is welcome that the Secretary of State opened the London stock exchange this morning, just after St David’s day and at the opening of Wales Week. Is this not a vindication of the two Labour Governments in Wales and Westminster working in partnership? In my constituency of Chatham and Aylesford, and across the country, economic growth is absolutely critical. What steps is the Secretary of State taking to ensure that economic growth is spread across the country, for my constituents and for Wales?

[Jo Stevens]

I did indeed have the privilege of opening the London stock exchange this morning to mark St David’s day and Wales Week. It gave me the opportunity to recognise Wales’s thriving financial services and fintech sectors, which are benefiting from this Government’s modern industrial strategy. We are also building small modular reactors in Wylfa, wind farms in the Celtic sea, new train stations in north and south Wales, and a stronger Welsh economy through our AI growth zones, investment zones and freeports—but most of all, we are building Wales’s future by investing in our economy, creating jobs and tackling the cost of living.