Connor Naismith
MP for Crewe and Nantwich · Labour · United Kingdom
“The Minister’s statement will be welcomed by year 2 at St Michael’s community academy in Crewe, who I visited recently. I heard letters read aloud by the children, demonstrating their concern about the need to protect our environment and natural habitats.”
“T2. During a coffee morning on the Sherborne estate in Crewe, I spoke with several residents who described persistent and distressing levels of antisocial behaviour in our community, including having eggs thrown at their properties.”
“Shabir Ahmed is a vile criminal, and the British public rightly want to see him deported. Does the Minister agree that where the law does not allow us to do so, we should change it, and that we should redouble efforts to secure returns agreements with countries like Pakistan?”
“As many hon. Members have said, high streets speak to something fundamental about our identity and self-confidence in the places we call home. However, in too many towns up and down our country, they are now filled with betting shops, charity shops, vape shops or, in many cases, empty shop windows, devoid of life. The hon.”
“Yes, I absolutely agree. We also need a tax system that incentivises the kinds of economic activity we want to see for the Pride in Place agenda. Too many of my small independent hospitality businesses have told me that it is not where we currently are.”
“I am a huge supporter of the high street rental auctions and the Pride in Place agenda, but we must go further in giving local authorities the power, capacity, confidence and funding to put those powers to use so that my constituents can once again be truly proud of the civic spaces that we call our town centres.”
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“T2. During a coffee morning on the Sherborne estate in Crewe, I spoke with several residents who described persistent and distressing levels of antisocial behaviour in our community, including having eggs thrown at their properties. Can the Minister set out what steps are being taken to ensure that antisocial behaviour is dealt with robustly in places like the Sherborne estate?”
“The Minister’s statement will be welcomed by year 2 at St Michael’s community academy in Crewe, who I visited recently. I heard letters read aloud by the children, demonstrating their concern about the need to protect our environment and natural habitats. Will the Minister join me in congratulating those year 2 classes, and set out why the Government’s 30 by 30 delivery plan is so important for reversing decades of nature decline?”
“Shabir Ahmed is a vile criminal, and the British public rightly want to see him deported. Does the Minister agree that where the law does not allow us to do so, we should change it, and that we should redouble efforts to secure returns agreements with countries like Pakistan?”
“That means embracing residential-led high street regeneration, which is why I am delighted to support Capital&Centric’s confidence in Crewe town centre with its proposed regeneration of the Royal Arcade, supported by 500 homes, plus bars, cafés, restaurants and other uses.”
“As many hon. Members have said, high streets speak to something fundamental about our identity and self-confidence in the places we call home. However, in too many towns up and down our country, they are now filled with betting shops, charity shops, vape shops or, in many cases, empty shop windows, devoid of life. The hon. Member for Bromsgrove (Bradley Thomas) spoke about design codes and shop frontages, which is a really important point that the Government should grip in recognising the civic importance of those spaces. If we allow the country to see that our standards have slipped, it is no wonder that standards slip elsewhere. To create an environment where it is possible for the kinds of businesses that we want to see succeed once again, we must give them what they need most: a community of customers on their doorstep.”
“I am a huge supporter of the high street rental auctions and the Pride in Place agenda, but we must go further in giving local authorities the power, capacity, confidence and funding to put those powers to use so that my constituents can once again be truly proud of the civic spaces that we call our town centres. If we act decisively, we can restore pride in our high streets and ensure that they once again reflect the strength and character of our communities.”
“Yes, I absolutely agree. We also need a tax system that incentivises the kinds of economic activity we want to see for the Pride in Place agenda. Too many of my small independent hospitality businesses have told me that it is not where we currently are. Kelly, from St Martha Greek taverna, is campaigning along with 50 local independent hospitality businesses, including the Red Cow and the GOAT sports bar in Nantwich, as well as Noodle Gurus in Crewe, alongside many others, to join our European counterparts in cutting VAT to 10% for hospitality businesses. I am proud to support their campaign. We need a stronger state, capable and willing to intervene at local level to fix things when the market fails to do so.”
“My community has been left in deep shock and concern following allegations of serious sexual offences, forced marriage and modern slavery against members of the Ahmadi religion of peace and light. Will the Prime Minister join me in thanking Cheshire constabulary, Cheshire East Council and wider agencies for their response to these concerning events? Will he also commit himself to ensuring that we receive the necessary resources to deliver justice when crimes have been committed and to reassure the wider community that this Government are on their side?”
“The consequences of the Conservative party’s failure to manage this project effectively are nowhere felt more deeply than in Crewe and Nantwich, where jobs and regeneration benefits have been lost and Cheshire East council has £11 million in sunk costs. I welcome the shift in emphasis from speed to capacity, but the network between Birmingham and Crewe is at capacity now, let alone in 10 or 20 years’ time. Will the Secretary of State commit to looking more urgently at how we address capacity constraints between Birmingham and Crewe? Will her Department engage with Cheshire East council on its plans to mitigate its losses as a result of the decision to cancel the line in the midlands?”
“We must end the private water monopolies, strip out private equity from this basic necessity and ensure that every pound spent in the system goes towards investing in infrastructure and controlling bills, not towards shareholder dividends and profits.”
“Control over the basics means securing our everyday lives, and that starts with the energy heating our homes and powering our industry. The energy independence Bill and the electricity generator levy Bill represent a structural shift in how this country powers itself. Crucially, they will break the link between electricity and skyrocketing gas prices and invest in the clean, home-grown energy of the future, thereby permanently shielding working families from volatile global markets. However, I must challenge the Government to go further, by restoring control over another utility: the water that flows through our taps and into our rivers and streams.”
“It is an honour to speak for my constituents in Crewe and Nantwich on the legislative agenda set out in the King’s Speech. It is a programme designed to restore security, stability and control over the basics in life. For too long our people have felt the consequences of economic shocks over which they have no control and an economic model that does not work for them. Now is the time to break that model and build something new that serves every community across our great country. You cannot improve what you do not control, and the legacy of the past 40 years is that the British state has relinquished too much control over those things that impact the pounds in the pockets and life chances of the British people.”
“Although there is room to go further, this King’s Speech delivers a comprehensive framework of security, and it tells the people of Crewe and Nantwich that the state is back in their corner—”
“I will not. It is time to bring water back under public control, ensuring that this life-essential utility is managed as a secure public good, not a private commodity. In the time I have remaining, I wish to talk about high streets. High streets are the visible heartbeat of our towns, and I warmly welcome the steps taken by this Government to date to support local authorities to intervene to fill empty shops. Intervention is only half the battle, however. We must also cultivate an environment where small businesses can genuinely succeed. Hospitality businesses are vital to that endeavour, and I call on the Government to support Hospitality Together and hospitality businesses in my constituency in their call for a sector-specific VAT cut for hospitality.”
“Crewe in my constituency currently faces proposals for yet another adult gaming centre, which I have personally objected to. Does my hon. Friend agree that the strengthening of gambling impact assessments, as well as the wider proposals in the Pride in Place strategy, will allow areas like Crewe to actively shape our high streets and that it is incumbent on local authorities to proactively take up those powers?”
“This war, in which we are rightly playing no part, has my constituents fearing for the future, not least in relation to rising energy and fuel costs. That underlines the crucial importance of bringing down the cost of energy and securing energy independence; but will the Prime Minister reassure my constituents that, while the Government are taking the necessary steps to provide us with long-term energy security through renewable energy and new nuclear, they will go further in the short term and tackle some of the profiteering that is happening, as well as directly supporting hard-pressed families and small businesses in my constituency in respect of the cost?”
“May I thank the Minister for the work he is doing to close asylum hotels, including the Crewe Arms hotel, and encourage him to go further still and close the Royal hotel in my constituency? Will he join me in reminding Conservative Members that it was under the Tory Government—prominent members of which now sit on the Benches with the turquoise Tories—that the concept of asylum hotels was invented? Indeed, they presided over the opening up of the business model for small boat crossings in the first place.”
“I particularly welcome the measures to ensure that warranted police officers go where we need them: on to our streets and into our communities. Can I draw particular attention to the intention to scrap the failed police uplift model—a policy that is about as Boris Johnson as it gets? Although it did recruit officers, they often ended up sat behind desks performing roles more suited to experienced police staff. Does the Home Secretary agree that scrapping police uplift will ensure that officers are more likely to be out fighting crime than sat behind desks?”
“Jono, Sam and the rest of the team at the GOAT sports bar in Nantwich have breathed new life into the town. Unfortunately, last month Jono’s stepdad suffered a cardiac arrest while in the bar and tragically passed away. The team at GOAT are now leading efforts to turn that tragedy into something positive by fundraising for defibrillators in the town, having already raised enough for six defibrillators and having had a further defibrillator directly donated. Will the Leader of the House join me in commending their efforts, and will he encourage people and services across Crewe and Nantwich to support this effort to save lives?”
“Incredibly, last year saw the fifth incident of agricultural pollution in just three years in the River Weaver, which runs through the centre of Nantwich in my constituency, resulting in thousands of dead fish and a stench that permeated our town centre. I pay tribute to Stuart Mitton from the Restore the Weaver action group, local angling groups and local ward councillor Anna Burton for the work they are doing on this, and I welcome the White Paper. How will its proposals ensure that we tackle agricultural run-off into rivers such as the River Weaver and, crucially, that where pollution does occur, we see swift justice?”
“Can I begin by expressing my sincere and enthusiastic thanks to the Secretary of State for today’s announcements? I have been campaigning, and some would say badgering Ministers, throughout my entire time in this place to address capacity challenges on the west coast main line arising from the steaming pile of mess left for this Government on HS2. I welcome the announcement that the Government intend to build a new rail line between Birmingham and Manchester, but following 14 years of mismanagement of projects such as this, how can the Secretary of State assure me and my constituents that these projects will actually be delivered, and how will they be insulated against the backwards, anti-growth, populist forces that we know would reverse these plans in a heartbeat?”
“Members have made: culture is about reflecting on our heritage, but also proudly embracing our future. Crewe has the partnerships, infrastructure and working groups ready to move quickly, as soon as the town of culture competition formally launches. We have a proud heritage, a strong story to tell and a cultural future that we are desperate to seize. I look forward to the Minister saying more about what the competition will entail.”
“It is now complemented by Lyceum Square, a purpose-built space for cultural events that has already hosted many events, including the Crewe Day festival, Crewe-on-Sea, Crewe Pride and many more. These institutions anchor a growing cultural quarter. The former Dorothy Perkins and Burton unit on Market Street—once another empty shell and a blight on the high street—now hosts CreweCreates, a vibrant space for arts and culture. That shows what can happen when creativity meets opportunity. This year will see further developments in Crewe with culture at their heart. Spring will see the opening of the Dome youth zone, and later in the year Crewe will become the joint home of the Cheshire archives. Those two projects promise to breathe new life into our town centre. Together they encapsulate perfectly the point that several hon.”
“The strong and established Crewe cultural forum brings together Cheshire East council, Crewe town council, the Lyceum theatre, our libraries and archives, local businesses, the NHS and community partners. Through our successful Arts Council England placemaker project, the Crewe//Makes Artspace, we have already demonstrated that Crewe can collaborate and think big about culture. I am particularly pleased that those cultural institutions at the heart of our town will lead Crewe’s bid for UK town of culture. That ambition is visible on our high street. The Crewe Market Hall has been reborn as a thriving hub for food, drink and entertainment. I was pleased to enjoy the festive pantomime at the Lyceum theatre—a jewel in our town, and Cheshire’s only surviving Edwardian theatre—and I will be back there in January to watch Russell Howard.”
“It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Ms Furniss, and to speak in the debate. Towns such as Crewe show exactly why the UK town of culture competition matters. For too long, places such as Crewe felt the consequences of decisions taken outside of their control: under-investment, economic mismanagement, rising costs and, of course, the devastating loss of High Speed 2. However, I am pleased to say that Crewe is turning a corner, and I am confident that 2026 will be the year—long overdue—when my constituents can lift their heads with pride in their town. We are seeing investment, ambition and real pride returning to our town centre, driven by our community and entrepreneurs, and supported by the economic stability that this Labour Government are delivering. Culture is at the heart of our renewal.”
“I urge the Government to be bold in their announcements on this subject and ensure that we leave the option open for a broader strategy of north-south connectivity, as well as east-west connectivity. I am delighted by the investments that we have made in the NHS. We are already seeing their benefits in reduced waiting times and improved patient experience. Finally, I thank the Chancellor for listening to my calls to take steps to tackle the dodgy vape shops on our high streets. My constituency was the subject of a recent BBC undercover investigation on the subject, so I am proud that this Government are taking action to tackle that. The Government have made fair choices in the Budget, which are the right choices in the economic circumstances, and I am proud to support them.”
“I place on the record my thanks to the Chancellor for listening to my calls to delay the implementation of changes to the employee car ownership scheme. I heard from many constituents who work at Bentley Motors in my constituency about how that would have left them out of pocket by hundreds of pounds a month. I am proud to have advocated on their behalf, alongside Unite the union, in making that case, and I thank the Chancellor for listening. I want to touch briefly on investment. In her Budget statement, I was delighted to hear the Chancellor recommit to investing in Northern Powerhouse Rail, which is vital to my constituency as a proud rail town in the north of England.”
“They go out to work every single day and earn their poverty. That is the Conservatives’ record in government, and they should apologise for it. Let us talk about the 40% of people who do not work. Many of my constituents will have worked at one stage or another, and they find themselves unemployed for reasons that are outside their control. Prior to the last election, Conservative MPs at least had the opportunity to place bets on their future unemployment, but my constituents did not manage to do the same. The Conservatives should reflect on the fact that many people find themselves in that situation through no fault of their own. Many other measures in the Budget are aimed at tackling the cost of living for my constituents, including increases to the minimum wage and reductions in energy bills.”
“My constituents want to know that the decisions taken in the Budget are fair, that they are necessary to tackle the long-term challenges this country faces, and that they align with their priorities and lived experience of daily life. This Budget achieves that, and I want to talk about some specific measures, beginning with the two-child cap. I have been incredibly frustrated by the level at which the Conservatives have sought to debate the two-child cap. They should hang their heads in shame for trying to present this as an argument between people who work and those who do not, because 60% of the families who will benefit from the abolition of the two-child cap are working families. I do not think that we in this place talk often enough about the fact that 33% of those who claim universal credit are in work.”
“I am concerned about attainment levels across secondary schools in Crewe, where, on average, only about 46% of pupils achieve a grade 4 in English and maths. Will the Minister meet me to discuss what further support we can provide to our hard-working school leaders and teaching staff to help raise outcomes and ensure that every child in Crewe gets the opportunities that they deserve?”
“Cheshire East council area has pockets of severe deprivation, centred largely around my constituency. Under the previous Government, local government funding allocations never really took account of those deprivations. Will the Minister meet me to discuss how we can rebalance funding towards the deprived areas in my constituency that have been left behind for too long?”
“Q15. Crewe railway station is the gateway to the north, and indeed the shop window for my constituency, with an average annual footfall of 4.5 million people. I am working with Cheshire East council on ambitious plans for Crewe360 to deliver much-needed investment into the station and the land around it. We want to adopt the Railway Industry Association’s station investment zone proposals, which could deliver much-needed improvements in transport, housing, regeneration and economic growth. Does the Prime Minister agree that Crewe would make a perfect pilot for those proposals, and will he work with me to bring Departments round the table to make these plans a reality?”
“I thank the Home Secretary for her statement, and for taking the bold action necessary to tackle the chaos and lack of control that we inherited in our asylum system. Does she agree that these changes are as much about incentivising the right behaviour by creating capped legal routes to asylum as they are about taking tough action to break the status quo, which sees thousands of people crossing the channel in a dangerous, uncontrolled and unfair way?”
“Opposition Members spend a lot of time complaining about the difficult decisions taken by this Labour Government, so I wonder whether the Chancellor can remind them what we have been able to do for public services and infrastructure as a result of this Government’s revenue-raising policies.”
“The subject of high streets is one that matters deeply in constituencies like Crewe and Nantwich, where the story of decline is slowly but surely being rewritten into one of renewal. For too long, our high streets were left behind. Fourteen years of Conservative government saw projects stall, shopfronts shuttered and absentee landlords allowed to hold back regeneration. In Crewe, the failed Royal Arcade redevelopment became the symbol of that neglect. Shops were demolished as part of a regeneration scheme, only for inflation, particularly construction inflation, to soar through the ceiling as a result of Liz Truss’s mini-Budget— [ Interruption. ] This meant that the project failed and in Crewe we have been left with a wasteland.”
“The Lyceum theatre, a jewel in our town, is now joined by the Lyceum Square, a modern development that complements its historic charm. Together, they anchor a growing cultural quarter, and that quarter is expanding. The former Dorothy Perkins and Burton unit on Market Street, once another empty shell and blight on the high street, now hosts Crewe Creates—a vibrant space for arts and culture. This shows what can happen when creativity meets opportunity.”
“My hon. Friend is absolutely right. Conservative Members do not like it, but what I am articulating is the lived reality of my constituents and the impact of the Conservatives’ record on the economy while in government. The failure to tackle the root causes of decline was compounded by economic mismanagement that drove up construction costs and by the devastating loss of HS2, but I am pleased to report that Crewe is turning a corner. We are seeing real investment, real ambition and real pride returning to our town centre, and that transformation is visible. It is being led by local leaders, our community and our entrepreneurs, backed by the economic stability that this Labour Government are delivering. The Crewe market hall, for example, has been reborn. It is now a thriving hub of food, drink and entertainment.”
“My hon. Friend is absolutely right about restoring old buildings, and that is exactly what is taking place in Crewe. Alongside this, a rolling programme of cultural events from Crewe town council and the Crewe business improvement district is helping to make our town an early contender for this Government’s first town of culture award.”
“These are the building blocks of a high street that works for everyone. This is what happens when local leadership, community, ambition and targeted investment come together, rather than when we talk our communities down, as we have heard too often from Conservative Members. So I say to investors: come to Crewe. I say to artists and entrepreneurs: come to Crewe. I say to Government Ministers: come and see what happens when a town refuses to be left behind. As with our railway past, Crewe town centre is on the right track.”
“The scheme, alongside the Southern Gateway project, is a great example of public investment connecting the dots, creating vibrant public spaces and opening up opportunities for a new community of businesses to emerge on our once-neglected high street. Businesses such as the Arena, the Ice and Fire tattoo studio and ABC Childcare are leading the way, and the upcoming Youth Zone, opening in spring 2026, will give young people a space to thrive right in the heart of our town centre. Even the old M&S unit, long a symbol of stagnation, now has a positive future under new ownership. It is a powerful metaphor for Crewe itself: written off by some but now ready to rise. We have seen investments in places such as the Mirion Street boxing club, supporting grassroots sport and building community resilience.”
“I am going to make some progress. Opportunity is exactly what the repurposing the high street grants delivered by our Labour council in Cheshire East has delivered. These are £30,000 grants for local entrepreneurs to renovate empty shop units, and they have empowered small and independent businesses to take risks, fill empty units and breathe new life into our town centre. They have transformed vacant spaces into thriving ventures, and I invite Ministers to come to Crewe to see the impact for themselves and to consider whether the scheme could be a blueprint for a national roll-out, because it works.”
“The Minister is right to say that the Opposition have not been clear about how they would fund this tax cut, but there are some clues. The shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury, the hon. Member for North Bedfordshire (Richard Fuller), told a fringe event at the Tory party conference that we should look at the Australian system of state pensions and “essentially” a means-tested state pension. Does my right hon. Friend share my concerns that under the Tories the state pension would be under threat?”
“The hon. Gentleman said that this tax cut would benefit everybody. Can he tell me how it would benefit people who do not currently pay it because their property is not worth enough?”
“I start by acknowledging a point that many Members across the House have made. Many of us would not defend the principle of stamp duty; indeed, if it did not already exist, it is hard to believe that we would invent it. However, that is not the question before us today. If we are to decide to abolish stamp duty, we must say how we will pay for it, and we have to justify that decision as a priority above all the other decisions that we might make on what to do with that money.”
“The hon. Member is right to point out that the Conservatives had 14 years in government. Now they are in opposition, they want to talk about all the magical savings that they could make. Why did they not do it when they were in government? It is too little, too late. As I was saying, if you decide that you want to do this, you have to tell us how you will pay for it, and justify that priority over all the other priorities.”
“I completely agree. The most common reason I hear from my constituents for their inability to get on the housing ladder is that astronomical rise in house prices.”
“I will make some progress. The motion tells us everything we need to know about the priorities of the Conservative party today. In the context of the vast majority of options that we could choose to pursue, this is a regressive tax cut, funded once again by cuts—cuts that they will not be brave enough to specify with any credibility. Reckless with our public finances, reckless with our public services, and utterly out of touch with the realities facing working families in constituencies like mine in Crewe and Nantwich.”
“If we want to examine the reality beyond the rhetoric of the modern day Conservative party’s record on home ownership, it is that: failure to deliver, soaring prices and broken dreams.”
“They have no credible plan to pay for their promises, just vague talk of savings from the very services that our communities rely on—our schools, NHS and local infrastructure. The Tories have some cheek to come here and talk about home ownership when they manifestly failed to build the homes that our country needs because they presided over a broken planning system that they did nothing to reform. As I mentioned earlier, my constituents have not forgotten what Liz Truss’s mini-Budget did to their mortgage payments. During the election campaign, I spoke directly with families in Crewe and Nantwich who had seen their monthly costs soar overnight. I distinctly remember speaking to a man who told me that his mortgage payments had risen by £1,000 a month and that he had been forced to sell his home as a result.”
“I thank the hon. Member for that intervention. Look, we will await the Budget to see the OBR’s forecasts, but I will take no lessons from the party opposite on economic credibility. They are the party of Liz Truss, which dragged this country into the economic abyss. We know that Tory austerity and a lack of investment in our country’s infrastructure are part of the story of why our economic growth and productivity have never recovered since the financial crash in 2008. It seems like the Conservatives want to take us right back to the beginning of that 14 years of chaos, failure and decline. I think my constituents would say no, frankly. What is worse, the Conservatives cannot even tell us with any credibility where the cuts would fall. We have seen this playbook before.”