Rebecca Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will meet (a) hon. and Rt hon. Members with constituencies in Devon and (b) key stakeholders to discuss steps to (i) conserve Dartmoor moorland and (ii) protect Dartmoor ponies.
Rebecca Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he plans to enable agri-environment agreement applications before the current agreements expire.
Rebecca Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if his Department will carry out full impact assessments of the (a) social and (b) economic impact of Environmental Land Management Schemes on upland farms.
Rebecca Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to help ensure that people farming on commons can benefit from (a) the Sustainable Farming Incentive and (b) Countryside Stewardship.
Rebecca Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will make an estimate of the number of pensioners who will be affected by proposed changes to the eligibility criteria for the Winter Fuel Payment in South West Devon constituency.
Rebecca Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to implement the recommendations of the report of the Independent review of protected site management on Dartmoor led by David Fursdon.
Rebecca Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department is taking steps to coordinate efforts with local groups to protect Dartmoor ponies.
Rebecca Smith: Nearly 22,000 of my constituents will lose their winter fuel payments. Currently, only 1,500 will receive it. That is a massive cliff edge for those 22,000 residents. While many of them may feel that they do not require that payment, as has been mentioned by other hon. Members, the vast majority of those pensioners fall into low and middle-income brackets because things do not have such high...
Rebecca Smith: I agree. My hon. Friend makes an incredibly important point about those vulnerable older people who live with dementia; many of our constituents will be in that situation. Why are we not looking at alternative ways to deal with this cliff edge? A couple of years ago, the Conservative party proposed the council tax rebate scheme, which used the council tax system as a mechanism to ensure the...
Rebecca Smith: What support her Department is providing to victims of domestic abuse.
Rebecca Smith: Devon and Cornwall-based domestic abuse charity First Light south-west, and national domestic abuse charity Hourglass, which works specifically with older victims, have highlighted to me the challenges that they face with short-term funding streams for their work. The current year-on-year funding model results in issues with the recruitment and retention of staff, which in turn impacts on...
Rebecca Smith: Alderman Tooling in my constituency is one of thousands of employers now investing in the talent of tomorrow. In five years’ time, does the Secretary of State expect the number of apprentices to be higher or lower than today?
Rebecca Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans she has for transport improvements in the South West; and whether it remains Government policy to (a) fund the new Tavistock to Plymouth railway line, (b) provide funding to complete the South West Rail Resilience Programme and (c) implement the £2 bus fare extension.
Rebecca Smith: It is a pleasure to follow the maiden speech of the hon. Member for Dunfermline and Dollar (Graeme Downie). I was especially interested in his recollections of the fall of the Berlin wall in 1989, which is also one of my early political memories, although I am obviously on the other side of the House as a result. I was interested in his reference to Monte Cassino, which might make sense...
Rebecca Smith: It is a pleasure to follow the maiden speech of the hon. Member for Dunfermline and Dollar (Graeme Downie). I was especially interested in his recollections of the fall of the Berlin wall in 1989, which is also one of my early political memories, although I am obviously on the other side of the House as a result. I was interested in his reference to Monte Cassino, which might make sense...
Rebecca Smith: Devonport dockyard in Plymouth has a strong future proudly refitting the Royal Navy’s submarines. However, for that to happen, the city needs, among other things, more housing. The location for this housing is there, in the city centre, but it will require a national effort to deliver it. Will the Minister meet a cross-party delegation from Plymouth to take forward these vital plans?
Rebecca Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has for the proposed urgent and emergency care centre at Derriford Hospital in Plymouth.
Rebecca Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what his Department's timetable is for the completion of the new Urgent Care and Emergency Centre at Derriford Hospital, Plymouth.
Rebecca Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether she plans to increase funding for road resurfacing in (a) the South West and (b) South West Devon constituency.
Rebecca Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps she plans to take to increase access to bus services in (a) South West Devon constituency and (b) the South West.
