To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the reliability of East Midlands Railway services serving Leicester; and what steps she is taking to improve punctuality and reduce cancellations on the Midland Main Line.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the reliability of East Midlands Railway services serving Leicester; and what steps she is taking to improve punctuality and reduce cancellations on the Midland Main Line.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions she has had with East Midlands Railway on improving the performance of services between Leicester and London St Pancras.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions she has had with East Midlands Railway on improving the performance of services between Leicester and London St Pancras.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment her Department has made of the public health impacts of reduced air quality caused by urban grass and open-air fires on urban populations in Leicester.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment her Department has made of the public health impacts of reduced air quality caused by urban grass and open-air fires on urban populations in Leicester.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of targeted primary care capital allocation to help tackle health inequalities in local authorities ranked among the 15 most deprived in England, such as Leicester.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of targeted primary care capital allocation to help tackle health inequalities in local authorities ranked among the 15 most deprived in England, such as Leicester.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps her Department is taking to allocate health capital funding to reduce health inequalities in cities where NHS Trust data records a 12-year life expectancy gap between the most and least deprived wards, such as Leicester.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps her Department is taking to allocate health capital funding to reduce health inequalities in cities where NHS Trust data records a 12-year life expectancy gap between the most and least deprived wards, such as Leicester.

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of funding allocated to Leicester City Council.

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of funding allocated to Leicester City Council.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate her department has made of the number of non-compliant disposable vape units seized by trading standards officers in Leicester over the past 12 months.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate her department has made of the number of non-compliant disposable vape units seized by trading standards officers in Leicester over the past 12 months.

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that urban fire services serving high-density areas, including Leicester, receive dedicated equipment and specialist training to respond to high-volume grass fire outbreaks during heatwaves.

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that urban fire services serving high-density areas, including Leicester, receive dedicated equipment and specialist training to respond to high-volume grass fire outbreaks during heatwaves.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate her Department has made of the change in the number of emergency department attendances at the University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust since the delivery of integrated multi-disciplinary primary care hubs in Leicester East.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate her Department has made of the change in the number of emergency department attendances at the University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust since the delivery of integrated multi-disciplinary primary care hubs in Leicester East.

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made, if any, of Operation Pedalfast in Leicester to remove illegal e-bikes; and whether they plan to encourage other cities and towns to follow suit.

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made, if any, of Operation Pedalfast in Leicester to remove illegal e-bikes; and whether they plan to encourage other cities and towns to follow suit.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps she is taking to ensure that (a) transport funding and (b) infrastructure investment are allocated equitably to cities that are not part of a mayoral combined authority or city region, including Leicester.

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps she is taking to ensure that (a) transport funding and (b) infrastructure investment are allocated equitably to cities that are not part of a mayoral combined authority or city region, including Leicester.

Lords statement on local government reorganisation.

Lords statement on local government reorganisation.

My Lords, I thank the Minister for the opportunity to ask questions on this Statement. On these Benches, several of us have run unitary councils. We recognise the potential for improved efficiencies and better delivery for residents. However, that must be done on the basis of genuine communities and geographies,...

My Lords, I thank the Minister for the opportunity to ask questions on this Statement. On these Benches, several of us have run unitary councils. We recognise the potential for improved efficiencies and better delivery for residents. However, that must be done on the basis of genuine communities and geographies,...

My Lords, there are some deeply worrying elements in the Statement. First, it was issued on the final day before the Commons Recess. A momentous decision of that purport should be the subject of detailed scrutiny but that has been deliberately avoided. Secondly, the announcement has been made by a...

My Lords, there are some deeply worrying elements in the Statement. First, it was issued on the final day before the Commons Recess. A momentous decision of that purport should be the subject of detailed scrutiny but that has been deliberately avoided. Secondly, the announcement has been made by a...

My Lords, I am grateful to the noble Lord, Lord Jamieson, and the noble Baroness, Lady Pinnock, for their questions and comments on the local government reorganisation Statement.

I will begin with the timeline that has led us to the decisions announced on 16 July, because it is important that we...

My Lords, I am grateful to the noble Lord, Lord Jamieson, and the noble Baroness, Lady Pinnock, for their questions and comments on the local government reorganisation Statement.

I will begin with the timeline that has led us to the decisions announced on 16 July, because it is important that we...

My Lords—

My Lords—

Oh!

Oh!

My Lords, I declare my interest as a vice-president of the LGA. It is very encouraging to see how keen the Liberal Democrats are to scrutinise the Government. Given the inconsistent approach to last week’s reorganisation announcements, can the Minister please confirm whether officials advised Ministers that an expansion of...

My Lords, I declare my interest as a vice-president of the LGA. It is very encouraging to see how keen the Liberal Democrats are to scrutinise the Government. Given the inconsistent approach to last week’s reorganisation announcements, can the Minister please confirm whether officials advised Ministers that an expansion of...

When we took these decisions, we were very aware that some of the councils involved were already receiving exceptional financial support. We continue to work with those councils through the EFS process in the usual way, but LGR will save money over time and make the sector more sustainable in...

When we took these decisions, we were very aware that some of the councils involved were already receiving exceptional financial support. We continue to work with those councils through the EFS process in the usual way, but LGR will save money over time and make the sector more sustainable in...

Can my noble friend provide some details and facts? She may not be able to answer now, but I would like her to do so in writing. The Statement claims that there will be very substantial savings from this operation—savings of £1 billion are mentioned at one point—but it is...

Can my noble friend provide some details and facts? She may not be able to answer now, but I would like her to do so in writing. The Statement claims that there will be very substantial savings from this operation—savings of £1 billion are mentioned at one point—but it is...