Speeches by Curtis.

“My final question is about what we would assume would be a small, easy win. I was not born when the property prices that we use to evaluate council taxes were set. We have lots of data. It would not be a particularly burdensome task to redo it based on new property prices. Do you have a date in mind for that?”

“I suppose that is why I framed the question in that way. I know that the business rates reset has not been in the expected timeframe, but there was a sense of “This is what we are working to for this date.” Surely there could be a long-term plan that says, “Obviously we will have to look at the value of properties dram…”

“This is on a significantly smaller scale than what Clive was just talking about, but most of the evidence we get is, “Of course you should introduce a tourism levy—it’s been a success,” and there are enough examples where it could be. Is this something you are now looking at giving strategic combined authorities the po…”

“But the Department is you.”

“The question is about incentives. My point is that, when you look at the way you are going to approach this reset, will you look at how you can ensure, both with this reset and future ones, that there is still a strong incentive in the business rates system to encourage people to attract investment in the local area?”

“Do you think that the introduction of the Universal project adds extra urgency, given the potential increase to costs to ensure that a strategic authority is in place across that geography?”

“I am Chris Curtis, Labour MP for Milton Keynes North.”

“Can I just do one follow-up on the business rates reset? I think this is an important point that will become more important. Over the past 10 years, the country has been incredibly economically unequal geographically. That is a real problem, and I appreciate that we have to account for that, but probably the biggest di…”

“The other point is that you would have to completely reset it. The extent to which you do a reset could also encourage incentives.”

“We will see where the Treasury ends up, and I hope they end up pushing this forward. However, there is one very specific example, probably where it will have the most impact, that is relevant to your Department. Without wanting to speak on behalf of Bedford council, I imagine there are many who are incredibly nervous a…”

“Sorry, Chair; I spent a lot of time on a question that was not mine.”

“I do not know whether you watched the previous panel, but I want to come in on that point. You will have seen what Catherine Howard has written, particularly when it comes to large national infrastructure projects. I have spoken to other planning lawyers as well. I spoke to one yesterday, who said that, if he were to g…”

“I completely agree on that. I am completely sold on the need for the changes and EDPs. My worry is purely that this is not going to stop the bat tunnels or their equivalents—whatever we are looking at—getting built. The consequences of not getting this right are quite severe in terms of building enough homes and being …”

“I want to jump in briefly on this point because the logic is slightly lost on me. We know that, particularly at the moment, land is often overpaid for by developers compared with what the local authority may want to extract from the land value through section 106. They will come back later and say, particularly given w…”

“I am Chris Curtis. I am the Labour MP for Milton Keynes North.”

“Andrew’s point is really important there. What is most offensive about the current system is not just that it blocks development, but that we have become one of the most nature-depleted countries in the world, so it is failing completely on its own terms. Getting this bit right is probably most important. I cannot turn…”

“The problem is that there is a difference between looking at things strategically and achieving things strategically. I get that the Bill is introducing a way of looking at things strategically, but you are still applying the precautionary principle to EDPs. When you have an organisation such as Natural England that ha…”

“It is not necessarily about increasing the amount of money that is extracted. It is about stopping what we have now: housing in this country has completely stopped because all projects have suddenly stopped becoming viable because the way we extract land value in this country is very far from being ideal in our current…”

“That is not a comfort.”

“What figures are you talking about for the initial cash investment if you were to make a guess, Tom?”