Speeches by Powell.

“You specified in the remediation plan that additional legislation may be needed. Obviously, that might include primary legislation on the stick, if you like, in respect of going building by building and getting it done. First, can you update us on when you expect to bring forward legislation and what its main component…”

“Could you explain the goal of the legislation a bit more? You mentioned a backstop. How will it help to deliver this new target?”

“I have another timeline question. The consultation on the proposals in the “Construction Products Reform” Green Paper closes on 21 May. What is your timeline following that for implementing the proposals?”

“I have a final question on remediation. The London Fire Commissioner said in his evidence that the state of care homes was the thing that kept him awake at night the most. Are you confident that care homes are being sufficiently protected? Obviously, the Government have announced that new care homes will have mandatory…”

“I have a follow-up question on the 1.5 million homes target and building safety. I am sure you will know that starts for new social homes have dropped significantly—90% in London and 39% nationally. Something we have heard from the National Housing Federation and others is that the cost of remediation, particularly for…”

“On the other side of the equation, we also heard from some of the house builders on the building safety levy. In your letter to the Committee, you said that that will come into force in 2026. Has there been an impact assessment on the building safety levy specifically and the 1.5 million home target? It was a question …”

“I never speak for Grenfell campaigners—they can speak for themselves—but I am absolutely certain that the last thing that they would want is access to the building safety fund, the building safety regulator and the building safety levy to mean fewer social homes in this country. I am certain that they want to see more,…”

“We heard from the deputy leader of Kensington and Chelsea about the changes that they have made, specifically around resilience. However, to come back to this theme of oversight, obviously one of the concerns is that within your reporting on gov.uk and the kind of oversight and scrutiny that we have of central Governme…”

“On the specific challenges for central London, does my hon. Friend agree that Westminster council is making the right decision to make use of the new council tax powers to implement a premium for second home owners? Will she join me in encouraging Kensington and Chelsea council to look at doing the same? That could rai…”

“Under the Conservative party, the asylum budget ballooned to over £4 billion, taking 28% of our overseas development assistance for in-country refugee costs—mainly hotels—against an OECD average of 13.8%, making us a big outlier internationally. I welcome the commitments to speed up processing and reduce hotel use, but…”

“Nothing symbolises the drift and decline of the past 14 years more than the appalling state of planning and infrastructure in Britain: a housing crisis that has forced children to live in overcrowded and unsafe homes; an energy crisis that has left us dangerously exposed to shocks in the global energy market; and a lit…”

“I could not agree more. That is why the devolution of fee setting is so important. It should enable an improvement in the capacity of planning departments and the training for councillors on planning committees to make those decisions effectively. I also thank all the resident associations in my constituency who put ti…”

“Does my hon. Friend agree that local people will still have a role in developing local plans and in many of the more complicated planning applications? Some of what we have heard today around local input has been scaremongering.”

“I thank the hon. Lady for that point. The housing target for London is 88,000. She will know well that the previous target was never remotely close to being hit under the previous Government. With targets not being hit, we are interested in net new dwellings: affordable and social housing for the people I am most conce…”

“Just to build on that, I open this question to everybody. As you said, the recommendation was accepted in principle, and the Government have said they will publish on gov.uk all recommendations since 2024. Do you think that is sufficient in terms of that transparency and accountability for implementation that you talke…”

“I am the MP for Kensington and Bayswater.”

“Finally from me, before we get into some of the details, I have two specific questions on the oversight. First, there are recommendations in this inquiry for local councils and the London Fire Brigade; we will hear from them in the second panel. How would it ensure that different levels of Government and different bodi…”

“One follow-up question for Councillor Taylor-Smith on the Chair’s question about duty of candour, because that is obviously closely aligned to the kind of change that the council leadership said they wanted to see post the fire. That includes treating members of the public and each other with mutual respect, being open…”

“I thank my hon. Friend for the powerful way in which he is introducing the Bill. Will he recognise the work of pioneering teams such as the one at Charing Cross hospital, under Imperial College healthcare NHS trust, where Professor Michael Seckl is leading the way in groundbreaking treatment for and research on gestati…”

“During the holy month of Ramadan, will my right hon. Friend join me in paying tribute to the Almanaar Muslim cultural centre in north Kensington, which played such a pivotal role after Grenfell and throughout the pandemic, and which is now inspiring as a place of worship, a community kitchen, a nursery and so much more…”