Parliamentary Debates (Hansard)
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Tuesday Volume 580 13 May 2014 No. 161 HOUSE OF COMMONS OFFICIAL REPORT PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES (HANSARD) Tuesday 13 May 2014 £5·00 © Parliamentary Copyright House of Commons 2014 This publication may be reproduced under the terms of the Open Parliament licence, which is published at www.parliament.uk/site-information/copyright/. 553 13 MAY 2014 554 great progress in this area. He will know that the House of Commons devolution of business rates, for example, allows London, and other parts of the country, to keep 50% of business Tuesday 13 May 2014 rate income. That is worth £3 billion a year to London, and those retained business rates have helped to pay for the £1 billion Northern line extension to Battersea, so The House met at half-past Eleven o’clock this is working in London. PRAYERS Mr Barry Sheerman (Huddersfield) (Lab/Co-op): May I press the Minister a little more on real devolution to the regions of this country? Yorkshire now has no [MR SPEAKER in the Chair] democratic voice; it has no organisation that strategically focuses on Yorkshire in the coming years. Yorkshire has BUSINESS BEFORE QUESTIONS a bigger population than Scotland, so when can we have that kind of focus and leadership? TRANSPORT FOR LONDON BILL [LORDS] Second Reading opposed and deferred until Tuesday Greg Clark: The hon. Gentleman is wrong about 10 June (Standing Order No. 20). that. I have a great deal of respect for him but he has not noticed the creation of the combined authority in Yorkshire, which has brought together the councils BUCKINGHAMSHIRE COUNTY COUNCIL (FILMING ON in the area for precisely that purpose. It has included HIGHWAYS)BILL [LORDS] the signing of a city deal, which has been hailed by the Lords message (7 May) relating to the Bill considered. people of Yorkshire, including the leader of Leeds city Resolved, council, who says: That this House concurs with the Lords in their Resolution.—(The “This…spells…a fundamental shift in the relationship between Second Deputy Chairman of Ways and Means.) Whitehall and the regions. It marks the first steps of a new era” That will allow the north to “truly control” its “own destiny.” I think the hon. Gentleman should talk to Oral Answers to Questions Councillor Wakefield. Mr Charles Kennedy (Ross, Skye and Lochaber) (LD): Would the Minister concur with the view that in the DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER event of Scotland rejecting the independence option in September, the option of devolving power from Westminster The Deputy Prime Minister was asked— and Whitehall represents a post-referendum way forward— but that it can be only one side of a two-sided coin, with Devolution of Powers the other being more re-dispersal of power within and across Scotland? The highlands and islands have lost 1. Bob Blackman (Harrow East) (Con): What recent power from Highlands and Islands Enterprise to Edinburgh, discussions he has had with his ministerial colleagues from the Crofting Commission to Edinburgh, and over on further devolution of power from Westminster and regional and local control of our emergency services. Whitehall. [903978] That is not what those of us who were arguing for devolution before some Scottish National party Members The Minister of State, Cabinet Office (Greg Clark): I were Members of this House had in mind. am a member of the local growth committee, which is chaired by the Deputy Prime Minister and brings together Greg Clark: The policy and the practice of this Ministers from a wide range of Departments monthly Government has been to devolve power from this place to focus on local growth programmes, including the to our great cities across the country. I do not think that delivery of the recommendations of the Heseltine review. has been the policy of the Administration in Scotland, To date, we have completed 24 city deals and by the who have centralised power and reduced the influence summer all 39 local enterprise partnerships, which have of our great cities north of the border. submitted their economic plans, will have been assessed and we will make the announcements of local growth deals at that point. Ms Gisela Stuart (Birmingham, Edgbaston) (Lab): City deals are a good start, but if our city regions really Bob Blackman: Further devolution has taken place to want to prosper the time has come to give them the Scotland and to Wales, and it has now been a year since power to levy a supplement on the business rates, as the the London Finance Commission reported on proposals Mayor of London has. for devolution to London and the great cities. What progress has my right hon. Friend made in his discussions Greg Clark: I am a great fan of the hon. Lady’s with Treasury colleagues on devolving property taxes to efforts to promote Birmingham, which she does very London and the other great cities of this country? successfully in this House, and to make sure that that great city has the powers and the future that are a Greg Clark: My hon. Friend is a great champion of tribute to its glories in the past. Through the city deals empowering our great cities—he is a distinguished leader we are giving more control of the very considerable of a London council—and he knows we have made expenditure that currently is made in Birmingham but 555 Oral Answers13 MAY 2014 Oral Answers 556 which is handled by central Government. If we do that, That is why our 24 city deals have been based on what we can come on to address proposals that Birmingham local leaders and businesses want; it is their ideas that is making on other matters. they have put forward and we back them. Local Enterprise Partnerships (Devolution) Mr Nicholas Brown (Newcastle upon Tyne East) (Lab): The Government have conceded the principle of territorial 2. Stephen Mosley (City of Chester) (Con): What Ministers in England with the appointment of the City discussions he has had with the Cheshire and Minister for Portsmouth. As I understand it, the reason Warrington local enterprise partnership on devolving the Government did that was economic development-led. powers and responsibilities from central Government. Surely the case for the north-east of England is far [903979] stronger, with unemployment rates being higher. The Minister of State, Cabinet Office (Greg Clark): I Greg Clark: The right hon. Gentleman was a regional met the board members of Cheshire and Warrington Minister in the previous Government. Let me just reflect local enterprise partnership, including Christine Gaskell for a moment on my home town of Middlesbrough. I and Howard Hopwood, and the council leaders of carry around with me a medallion that was struck to Cheshire east, Cheshire west and Chester, to discuss commemorate a statue, publicly unveiled, to the first their strategic economic plan on 19 March. We are mayor of Middlesbrough. We are still waiting in considering their proposals in their plan and expect to Middlesbrough to see a public move to erect a statue to make an announcement on the growth deal in July. the former regional Minister of the north-east. We want to empower our local leaders, and what we are doing is Stephen Mosley: One project being promoted by the the right way round. Cheshire and Warrington LEP is electrification of the west coast main line from Crewe to Chester and beyond Mr Speaker: I am sure we are all very interested in the into north Wales. Does my right hon. Friend agree that Minister’s medallion. that and other such proposals show the importance of LEPs acting as strong local champions for critical John Stevenson (Carlisle) (Con): I agree with the infrastructure projects? Minister that this idea of regional Ministers is not the way forward, and that it is important to strengthen Greg Clark: My hon. Friend is right, and he is exactly local government. Does he agree that there is a place for such a strong local champion. As a result of his impressive elected mayors within that? campaign, that proposal features very strongly in the Cheshire and Warrington strategic plan. I know that it Greg Clark: I do agree with that. Having cited the has also attracted attention from Sir David Higgins and first mayor of Middlesbrough, Henry Bolckow, and his report on HS2, which mentions the case for further noted that a statue erected by public subscription was improvements east and west, so he is doing a good job. made to him, I think that it would be good if we had a We will be considering those plans over the next few rash of them across the country in tribute to the leadership months, but he has made his point very forcefully today. that mayors can play. Regional Ministers Mr Dennis Skinner (Bolsover) (Lab): Does the Minister not realise that devolving power is useless—worthless—if, 3. Mr David Ward (Bradford East) (LD): What the at the same time, this Government are cutting local Government’s policy is on introducing regional government funds by 40%? Ministers to champion specific areas of the country. [903980] Greg Clark: That is not the view of council leaders in the hon. Gentleman’s area, who have been extremely The Minister of State, Cabinet Office (Greg Clark): enthusiastic about the city deals that have been struck. This Government have instituted the most radical The chair of the Sheffield city region, in which the hon. devolution of power and financial autonomy to local Gentleman’s constituency is involved, says that the powers councils and community groups for a generation. It is that have been devolved through the city deal will our policy to empower local leaders in cities, counties “drive forward real economic growth and create jobs” and districts.