Speeches by Newbury.

“We are getting the message that these are extremely talented, able and dedicated people who need the tools to be able to support the industry. We are hearing that loud and clear this morning. In the interest of time, can I move on to you, Sarah, and the availability of vets and animal health professionals on the front …”

“I take it you want the opportunity to do that, and we would very much want you to be involved. What would you be saying to DEFRA if it did come to you and ask what it should have? Put aside the issue of whether it is a new biosecurity centre, what would you like to see at Weybridge that we do not have currently?”

“One thing we are hearing loud and clear is that we cannot have single points of failure when it comes to disease outbreak, biosecurity and preparedness. On the point of partnership with industry, on behalf of your members, have either of you yet had the opportunity to feed into the process of creating this national bio…”

“Richard, do you agree that Dover is the priority, but that the investment at Weybridge is not adequate either?”

“You will be aware, as we are, that DEFRA recently announced it is investing £208 million to set up a new national biosecurity centre, which it says will modernise the Animal and Plant Health Agency facilities at Weybridge. We have heard, as a Committee, that Weybridge needs billions of pounds of investment; some of its…”

“As the father of five-year-old, I know at first hand how important indoor play facilities are. Providers in Cannock Chase, such as the Beach Hut in Norton Canes and the Kids Rule Play Cafe in Cannock, have written to me asking for consideration for a sector-specific VAT reduction and the opportunity to shape the reform…”

“T1. If she will make a statement on her departmental responsibilities.”

“I thank the Minister for that response. In my constituency, formerly represented by the great Jennie Lee, the council-owned theatre and museum are due to close in just two months’ time. Passionate members of our community have come together to form the Cannock Chase Theatre Trust and the Chase Heritage CIC to save thes…”

“T6. Alongside our theatre and museum, which I mentioned earlier, Cannock also has brilliant small music venues, such as The Station, all of which give our budding actors, museum curators and musicians a foot on the ladder. However, we still long for the opportunities that are open to children in other parts of the coun…”

“9. What steps her Department is taking to support small theatres and performing arts venues.”

“Just moving on to the replacement of water mains, the average lifespan of water mains is between 100 and 125 years. Ofwat has told us that the annual replacement rate of around 0.8% to 1% would be sustainable, but the final determination only commits water companies to 0.4%. What is your average replacement rate? Is it…”

“If the cost of living is an issue, though, would it not be preferable to keep bills down? Alongside all other water companies, you have asked for enormous increases in customers’ bills. If giving out dividends to customers to help them with the cost of living is part of the consideration, why do you not just lower bill…”

“There were quite a few themes coming out that really portray why that customer satisfaction rate has dropped. I heard about leaks being reported by MPs, but no follow-up received. We heard, as you have touched on, about the buck being passed between Severn Trent and the Highways Authority. In my neck of the woods, it i…”

“The main thing that I wanted to ask you about was customer satisfaction. We know that Severn Trent has seen one of the largest drops in customer satisfaction. When we look at the figures we see the percentages, but it is really important to see the stories that sit behind that. Last week, I wrote to 104 of my colleague…”

“You cannot deal with every case, so I would just ask you to go away and look at the customer service journey. It does seem like sometimes there are not regular updates.”

“If we are talking about profit before tax and profit after tax, you are paying out more in dividends than you are getting in profit after tax. Are you telling us that you have paid out so much in profit that, once you have paid your tax, which you have to do, you are at a loss because the dividend number is greater tha…”

“I will move on to my next question. The figures show that, relatively speaking, Severn Trent performs well when it comes to mains repairs, asset outages and reducing leakages, but you have not met your targets for supply interruptions and internal sewer flooding. How would you explain that variance in the health and ma…”

“I will move on to my next question. The figures show that, relatively speaking, Severn Trent performs well when it comes to mains repairs, asset outages and reducing leakages, but you have not met your targets for supply interruptions and internal sewer flooding. How would you explain that variance in the health and ma…”

“Just moving on to the replacement of water mains, the average lifespan of water mains is between 100 and 125 years. Ofwat has told us that the annual replacement rate of around 0.8% to 1% would be sustainable, but the final determination only commits water companies to 0.4%. What is your average replacement rate? Is it…”

“The main thing that I wanted to ask you about was customer satisfaction. We know that Severn Trent has seen one of the largest drops in customer satisfaction. When we look at the figures we see the percentages, but it is really important to see the stories that sit behind that. Last week, I wrote to 104 of my colleague…”