Speeches by Edwards.

“Thank you. David, what are your thoughts?”

“Thank you. Just moving on to the tools—”

“Thank you. We have identified that some of the processes might not quite work. Are there any other tools that are often used that do or do not work or should be there that could be used to help to assess the suitability of the pipeline or the appropriateness of the projects? Jim, would you like to come in?”

“The infrastructure strategy has come out. How do you feel about that? If I, again, slightly wear two hats, we know that these are overlaid with other strategies. Do you think they fit well? If we take the industrial strategy and the fact that we need to gain growth in that way, how do you feel about the infrastructure …”

“I am quite interested in what your views are on how a pipeline could engage private investment. One of the examples would be that pension funds are always looking for things that they can invest in and do their due diligence, and we have some consolidation and a real focus from the Government. That is just one example,…”

“Just to pick up on that point, this is one of the sectors that could double. If we unlock some of these issues in the process, if we deal with the planning and we get access to finance, we could employ many more people; we could build many more houses than we currently can. It is really critical that the micro-business…”

“The planning process slowing everything down was causing these issues whereby you were not able to sell and then you are not able to continue to profit. It is really crucial that these two things come together.”

“This morning, I led a debate on the issue around commercial energy billing, particularly the problems that small businesses face. You have all cited energy as being a particular issue. Do you have any thoughts on what needs to change in that industry to support small businesses? Where would you start? I will start with…”

“Thank you. That is really helpful.”

“Just building on that, I am the chair of the SME house builders APPG. I have been getting to grips with a lot of the challenges that SME house builders have been raising. Could you elaborate on what you were saying about the issues in navigating the complexity of the regulations and how workable they are for smaller fi…”

“I believe there are some talks to do that and expand that for exactly that reason, to make sure that it is much easier to find that land. I have also spoken to some small house builders about this issue around proportionality and how much you pay for your planning consent. It is much cheaper for a volume house builder …”

“A lot of the time, cash flow is part of the issue, but so is access to finance, particularly for SME house builders. Just two weeks ago, we had an announcement from the Government about the national housing bank. The intention is to plug the hole with £16 billion of public investment to build 500,000 homes. That includ…”

“Just finally on that, part of this issue is that you cannot build another house until you have sold the one that you have built. You are very reliant on the cash‑flow process moving through.”

“Leading on from that question, you have all given different answers. We have heard a lot of things that need to change and a lot of problems. One area that we have looked at is business energy costs. In particular, the issue is not just around how high the cost is but the behaviour of the suppliers and the imbalance in…”

“I thank the Minister for all the additional details and information on where we are hoping to get to. One thing I learned about was the problem of deemed contracts. When a business moves into a premises, they are put on an assumptive contract, but that has caused lots of problems. The ombudsman and Ofgem have decided t…”

“I thank the Minister for giving us lots of information on challenges and things that companies should be doing. Roasters café had four different smart meters fitted, none of which worked. When my constituent raised the alarm 12 months in and said she did not feel that the final meter was working, she was told, “It’s ab…”

“Absolutely. I thank the hon. Member for his intervention, because that is exactly what the report found, yet I will go on to argue that not enough progress has been made to make sure that those business customers are treated fairly. In response to this issue, I have launched a campaign inviting businesses across the co…”

“I am so pleased to have had the support of hon. Members; I remark on the stories that highlight some of the regulatory differences across the Irish sea. Caps for business energy, or some kind of cap on deemed contracts, could help to bring prices down without costing the Government and would help to get the market into…”

“I beg to move, That this House has considered regulatory powers over billing of energy supply to businesses. It is a pleasure to see you in the Chair, Mr Dowd. My constituent Samantha Panton opened the Roasters café on the high street more than 35 years ago. Recently, she received a demand from E.ON Next for £10,000, p…”

“HS2 has impacted many residents across Tamworth, with businesses and farmers having been forced to sell their land. One resident has been trapped for nearly 10 years with a property that borders HS2. He is unable to sell because 50% of the land occupies what HS2 claims is safeguarding territory. Despite the involvement…”