Speeches by Dean.

“Again, would it be an ambition of the Government to ensure that whatever new system you come up with remains revenue neutral? You mentioned in the paper just how reliant local authorities are on the income. Are you going to ensure that it remains revenue neutral?”

“There is a Labour manifesto commitment to replace. You are talking about reform. Is it going to happen this Parliament? Are you going to have a new system this Parliament?”

“Is it going to be iterative? We could see smaller changes. We could see another rate change, another relief in each fiscal event, whatever a major fiscal event is.”

“The point was separate actually. Are we going to see iterative changes as each Budget comes along, or are you going to unveil a major package of reform at some point?”

“Finally on the first steps that you have already taken, I have had some people report to me that the way in which the relief is going to be phased out, the cap is abolished, and then the lower rates are introduced for retail and hospitality in particular, could mean that some of the larger chain stores stand to benefit…”

“I would not dispute that, but smaller businesses are likely to only have the option of these smaller premises and there could be an impact where these larger chain stores want to take on more of the smaller premises in order to get the tax benefit and it squeezes out the opportunity for smaller businesses to exist on t…”

“I have a quick couple of follow-ups on some data points, and maybe it is best that we get these in writing. You said that often people call for an NI number or to clarify that their self-assessment has been submitted. Do we have data on the subject of phone calls and could we see a breakdown of what proportion of them …”

“Businesses prefer to be taxed rather than their landowners.”

“If you are being that open‑minded in the consultation, what if businesses and, indeed, local authorities take the view that we do need to replace the business rate system and maybe we need something closer to a commercial land value tax. That is a complete change of direction, but some people have suggested that could …”

“2. What steps she is taking to improve the effectiveness of community policing.”

“A Carshalton resident had her car stolen from her driveway. There is video footage of it, but the police just gave her a crime reference number and closed the case. Local businesses on Wallington high street tell me that organised shoplifters are acting with impunity. The Home Secretary touched on recruitment being par…”

“The Royal Marsden, which is a world-class facility for treating cancer patients, is in my borough of Sutton. One of the things that struck me when I went there was how much energy goes into trying to make the whole experience for the family and the child going through cancer as comfortable as possible. It was not just …”

“It is an issue close to my heart as well, as I moved into the care of my grandparents as a young teenager. Does my hon. Friend agree that it is crucial we get this absolutely right first time, because it is such a rare opportunity to address kinship care? Ministers should keep listening to kinship organisations to fill…”

“I have listened carefully to the Minister’s answers on the Chancellor’s visit to Beijing, and I believe she has said that concerns will be raised. Concerns have been raised time and again, and it has got us nowhere, so is it not time to draw a line in the sand? Is it not the minimum we could do to raise our voices a li…”

“I thank the hon. Member for Harrow East (Bob Blackman) for opening the debate. He is a fellow Bob and a fellow Spurs fan. I am not sure how much we will agree on in 2025, but something we certainly do agree on is Spurs winning something.”

“Yes. The hon. Gentleman covered lots of local and international issues, which I think demonstrates the breadth of debate in this place. Before I respond to some of the Back-Bench contributions, I will focus a little on my work in Carshalton and Wallington. I made three big promises to my constituents: on the NHS, on th…”

“T5. In my constituency we have an incinerator that regularly breaches its air pollution limits, but the Environment Agency does nothing about it. Will the Government tell us what they are doing to give the EA teeth?”

“We have heard quite a bit about market forces, the needs and preferences of consumers for cash, and firms’ desire to match that. We have also heard about the unreliability of card systems sometimes. As part of this inquiry, we have been told that all commercial traders should have an obligation to accept cash. That is …”

“I have just one more question, which is not really about the withdrawal of cash acceptance but about making it far more difficult to pay by cash. You can go into many supermarkets now, and you are ferried towards the self-checkout aisles. There might be one person on a till that is still accepting cash, for example. Th…”

“On all traders?”