Speeches by Rigby.

“The House will forgive me for not commenting on individual cases, but it is safe to say that I am familiar with the circumstances that my hon. Friend refers to, and I know the urgent nature of some of the issues that she—”

“I can answer that very directly. We keep these issues under review, as my hon. Friend would expect. Prior to those interventions, I was talking about action that the Government have taken. Our recognition of the importance of banking services to local communities underpins what we put in our manifesto, which was a pled…”

“I will give way first to my hon. Friend the Member for North West Leicestershire (Amanda Hack).”

“My hon. Friend raises very important issues, including in relation to Pride in Place. What is so important about this debate and about banking hubs is that there is an interaction between access to cash, and the ability to speak to a bank or a community banker, and the health of our high streets and how people feel abo…”

“I will.”

“Yes, I will.”

“Right.”

“It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Sir Desmond. In my very best Welsh, I thank the hon. Member for Caerfyrddin (Ann Davies)—she is smiling, which makes me think that I may have got that pronunciation ever so slightly wrong—for securing the debate. It is clearly an important topic to her, given the passi…”

“I was going through some of the changes in the landscape of banking, and will come to a slightly more negative aspect of that, if the right hon. Member will allow me to do so. I hope that will cover the substance of her question. The most recent data from the Financial Conduct Authority shows that over nine in 10 adult…”

“If the hon. Member would let me progress just a little further, I will cover the issues he refers to. As I said, the strength of feeling expressed today, and more broadly in parliamentary interactions, shows just how important this issue is to Members, and to people right across the country, particularly in the types o…”

“To go back to the thinking behind that. As you, Mr Glen, may or may not acknowledge—I am not sure—the LISA is not working as well as it could. From the way the Chair is looking at me, I gather this may have been covered in the recent report of the Committee, but perhaps not. Stakeholders have criticised the withdrawal …”

“In the absence of any other answer, I would imagine that it does, but I suspect it is probably best if we write to you to confirm exactly how it is taken into account.”

“Obviously, the intention is to keep it as low as you possibly can, because as I said, the affordability assessments still apply. To answer your question directly, I do not have an exact figure for the size of that liability.”

“My point is just that this is not such as to mean that very, very risky loans are being made, because everyone is still subject to the same affordability criteria, but to answer your—”

“It is important to say that where lenders do become part of the mortgage guarantee scheme, each mortgage is subject to the same affordability assessments and everything else. So this isn’t—”

“Again, it is a good question. I am afraid I was not involved in the last bit of the spending review.”

“I am Lucy Rigby, the Economic Secretary to the Treasury.”

“As to an exact figure, I am not sure, but I know that—”

“It is a very good question, so yes, absolutely.”

“Yes, we made it permanent in July—halfway through last year. I will explain the thinking behind that. Where the mortgage guarantee scheme becomes useful is in the event of an economic slowdown, where we have seen lenders take high loan-to-value products off the market. That is when a mortgage guarantee scheme becomes u…”