Speeches by Norris.

“The Government are committed to investing in coalfield communities, and I was pleased to meet my hon. Friend and Mayor Ros Jones to talk about their exciting plans in Doncaster, which we are investing in. We are looking very closely at what the Coalfields Regeneration Trust has sent us; the trust is, of course, a great…”

“I note the passion with which my hon. Friend speaks about this. His leadership is going to be crucial to the success of this project. It speaks exactly to why we have taken the approach we are taking: we need local communities in charge. They are the experts on their lives and on what they need, and they should be in t…”

“In June, we announced over £1 billion of investment to accelerate cladding remediation by giving social landlords the same access to Government remediation schemes as that afforded to private building owners. We will shortly publish revised guidelines on how to access the funding, and a joint plan with social landlords…”

“First of all, may I say how sorry I am to hear that my hon. Friend’s constituent Yasmin has been living in those conditions for so long? We have published draft guidance for social landlords to make sure that they understand the requirements under Awaab’s law. As my hon. Friend would expect, we are working very closely…”

“I do not think it is any secret that I, the Deputy Prime Minister and the Housing Minister are very hard on all our partners, including the public sector, in order to make sure that they do their job. The hon. Gentleman raises a very important concern, and the Housing Minister will write to him on it.”

“We are committed to rejuvenating our high streets and town centres. That includes tackling empty shops through high street rental auctions and legislating for a community right to buy to protect precious assets. That is set out in the spending review, providing funding to up to 350 places to help communities drive forw…”

“I cannot accept the hon. Lady’s characterisation. If we look at the history of the 2010 to 2024 Government, we can see that the pressure on local authorities, which we have heard about from across the House, was so great that we saw trading standards wither on the vine across the country. In many places, they are down …”

“I entirely share my hon. Friend’s view. We want to see thriving high streets. We want to see full shops, but we want to see them trading fairly, properly and in a quality way, working well with their staff and being a good part of the community. When that is not happening, it is really important that action is taken—sh…”

“We are committed to investing across all four nations and are delivering regeneration funding to many communities across Scotland, including the hon. Gentleman’s. I have met representatives of the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities, which speaks for Scottish authorities, on a couple of occasions, and I really val…”

“I recognise the efforts of the Birnbeck Regeneration Trust. My hon. Friend is a doughty campaigner for his community. We announced support for 350 communities at the spending review, and further details will follow, but I would be delighted to meet him to speak about Birnbeck in particular.”

“I do not have my diary for 18 September in front of me, but I do owe my hon. Friend a visit, and I will definitely make such a visit.”

“No, we do not think that the regulations are fit for purpose, which is why we are planning to amend them through the Bill that we published last week.”

“My hon. Friend is tempting a Member of Parliament for Nottingham to say something nice about Derby, which is slightly challenging for my prospects when I go home on Thursday. I do recognise the characterisation of the exciting plans ahead for Derby, and I share exactly her point on policing. We can have the most vibran…”

“It is a pleasure to serve with you in the Chair for the first time, Mr Western. I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Kensington and Bayswater (Joe Powell) on securing this important debate. He set out a compelling case for important things that he wants to see with regards to housing, attracting the best talent…”

“As my hon. Friend says, the evidence is there. With the spending review, we talk about billions of pounds here and hundreds of millions of pounds there, but I always think that these things have to be real in people’s lives, and that will be very real in the lives of the people in her community. The impact of the share…”

“I accept that point. I hope the hon. Gentleman will show a degree of forbearance, as I will come to that point shortly—I make that commitment to him and to the hon. Member for Bridgwater. Neighbourhood planning is a well-established part of our planning system, and we want that to remain the case. Our Department is awa…”

“On the point about the nation’s finances, it is the hon. Gentleman’s job to point the finger at the Government, but he and his party will continue to struggle until and unless they accept their role in that. At the end of the day, that inability to grasp the legacy of their 14 years in government will not help their fo…”

“The hon. Gentleman runs a paragraph or two ahead in my speech; I promise I will address that point shortly. I was talking about local plans, but I will turn to neighbourhood plans shortly. To help us achieve our ambition of universal coverage of up-to-date local plans, which I think is a shared ambition, not least beca…”

“The right hon. Lady will know, despite not having any parish councils, that the precept is a matter for local authorities. That is a decision that they will have to make. We recognise the concern on resourcing, and it will depend on the area. However, even though national structured support is ending, there is now expe…”

“I cannot give the hon. Gentleman succour on that point, but I hope that I can offer something in lieu. I accept that these things can become complex, but sometimes things are complex because they are complex. I do not think that we can wish that away and simplify a process in way that would mean taking away the fundame…”