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Category: Speeches

  • David Cameron – 2008 Speech on Economic Dynamism

    davidcameronold

    Below is the text of the speech made by David Cameron, the then Leader of the Opposition, on 6 May 2008.

    Clearly Crewe & Nantwich is our top campaigning priority in the next couple of weeks. We’ve got fifteen days to go: fifteen days to overturn Labour’s majority of over 7,000.

    Obviously it’s going to be a tall order but we will give it our best shot. We have a strong local candidate and a real focus from the entire organisation.

    We’ve made a strong start, first out of the blocks, our message being delivered right across the constituency.

    Our message will focus in particular on the 10p tax rate and how Gordon Brown is hurting the people of Crewe with tax increases just as their cost of living is going up. People in Crewe know.

    Later this week, the Mayor of New York will be here, joining the Mayor of London.  I’m sure you will all agree Boris has made a strong start with appointments, announcements on crime and, today, on delivering value for money for London taxpayers.

    In my meetings and discussions with Mayor Bloomberg I will be focusing in particular on education and his strong record in turning around failing schools in New York City.

    After our excellent election results last week people are saying: what next from the Conservatives? How are you going to build on your success?

    And how will you respond to the increased scrutiny you will now receive as the alternative government in waiting? I want to give a clear answer to that question today.

    First let me explain something fundamental about how I see the job of Prime Minister. I don’t think you achieve very much as Prime Minister unless you have an incredibly clear idea about what you want to achieve and how you’ll go about it.

    You’ve got to have a plan, and that plan has to have a sense of focus.
    You can’t do everything at once – and you shouldn’t try.

    You’ve got to focus on what you think is most important, and you’ve got to be pretty stubborn in going for it – and not letting yourself be blown about by events.

    I think the lack of a clear plan, the lack of a proper sense of focus, is why first Tony Blair and now Gordon Brown failed to deliver much in the way of meaningful change. And having seen those failures, people are entitled to ask us: where’s your plan? What’s your focus?

    So let me tell you.

    As you know the NHS comes first, and we’ve set out sensible plans on independence of the NHS, and investment in public health. But the last thing that the NHS needs is another upheaval.

    So, in terms of reform, those things that really need major change – the government I lead will have three areas of policy as its unremitting focus. I have chosen these areas because they are each fundamental to the broader objective I have set, to mend our broken society.

    The three areas are: school reform, welfare reform, and strengthening families.

    If we get those three things right, we will be helping to tackle the causes, and not just the symptoms, of the big social problems that people today really care about:

    Crime, disorder and incivility on our streets.

    Entrenched poverty and inequality.

    The lack of social mobility in Britain. The fact that, for millions, opportunity is stalled.

    The sense that people have that life, despite all the amazing opportunities of modern Britain – can be, frankly, a bit grim.

    The sense that our country may be getting richer, but the quality of our lives is getting poorer. These are the big issues we have to tackle and our plans for radical school reform, welfare reform and strengthening families are the right way to do it.

    But while those three areas of policy – schools, welfare, families – will be our focus for reform, there is no doubt that responsible stewardship of the economy will be the vital foundation of all we hope to achieve.

    And so today I want to focus on the economy. As I said in my speech in the City of London in March, I think we need a new economic strategy in this country. Far from preparing us for tough economic circumstances, Gordon Brown has created an economy that is more vulnerable than most, in the three crucial ways I described in my speech in March:

    First, the terrible state of our public finances. Instead of using the good years to prepare for a rainy day, Gordon Brown has left us with the worst deficit of any country in the developed world

    Second, the narrow base of our recent economic growth. Under Labour, financial services have grown four times as fast as the economy as a whole, while manufacturing has hardly grown at all.

    The size of government has increased a third more than the size of the economy. And rapid and uncontrolled immigration has flattered our growth statistics while disguising slower growth in what really matters: GDP per head.

    The third reason why we need a new economic strategy is that Gordon Brown has presided over a fall in Britain’s competitiveness as a location for international investment.

    And not only are we failing to attract new investment, the companies already here are being driven away.

    Shire Pharmaceuticals and United Business Media have already left. And in the last few days alone there have been reports that WPP, AstraZeneca, Diageo and just today, Brit Insurance, are all looking to leave.

    So we need to turn our economy round. I’ve set out many times what we would do to entrench monetary stability and fiscal responsibility.

    Enhanced independence for the Bank of England. Independent judgement of fiscal rules. A measurable commitment to share the proceeds of growth over an economic cycle.

    But there is another aspect to our plan.

    We need to move away from Gordon Brown’s old-fashioned bureaucratic interventionism, towards a new economic dynamism. Not old-fashioned subsidies for hand picked favourites, but modern support for enterprise and wealth creation.

    What does this mean?

    Transport. Research and innovation. Education and skills.

    These are the things which a modern economy needs to prosper.

    They don’t just happen by magic.

    They need government involvement.

    But it has to be the right kind of involvement.

    Our current Government is completely failing to get this right.

    Where they should be getting out of the way they regulate and tax too much.

    And where they should be intelligently engaged, such as on research and innovation, education and skills and transport infrastructure, they’re not doing nearly enough.

    The next Conservative Government must get this right. Creating a strong economy will be the foundation of everything we hope to achieve.

    So today I’m really delighted to announce that we will be working in the months ahead with one of Britain’s greatest business and export success stories, Rolls Royce.

    We want to understand in detail the factors that contribute to successful science, technology, engineering and manufacturing in the twenty-first century – and what government can do to help put those factors in place for British industry as a whole.

    Members of our policy teams will be embedded within Rolls Royce teams – both in the UK and internationally. We will hold a manufacturing summit later in the year to investigate how to engineer a modern manufacturing revival in this country. And I’m looking forward on a personal level to benefiting from the advice and expertise of this great British company.

  • Frances O’Grady Speech – 2014 Speech at the Unionlearn Conference

    Below is the text of the speech made by Frances O’Grady to the 2014 Unionlearn conference.

    Thanks Juliette [Alexander] and to everyone for coming.

    Welcome to the 2014 unionlearn conference.

    As ever, a great opportunity for us:

    To celebrate our magnificent achievements in the field of learning and skills

    To hear inspirational stories from ordinary workers we have supported

    And to reflect on what the future holds for us.

    I want to begin by saying thank you.

    Thank you to all of our partners for the great support you give us. Thank you to our learning reps for your outstanding work. And thank you to the staff at unionlearn for doing such a great job.

    I know the past few months have been incredibly tough. The government’s decision to slash our budget by almost a fifth has had a big impact. I’d be lying if I claimed otherwise.

    But it’s thanks to your professionalism and commitment that we’ve still been able to support learners so effectively. This year, there have been 34 successful bids for new workplace projects. Each different. But each making a difference. And that’s what our work is all about.

    Touching lives.

    Changing lives.

    Transforming lives.

    A few months ago I travelled up to Stoke to meet workers in the ceramics industry. It’s a city that has borne the brunt of industrial change. Unemployment is higher than average and pay rates are low. But there I saw for myself how our work on learning is giving people hope.

    People like David Barker. After leaving school he had a number of short-term jobs. He spent time on the dole. But at the age of 21, things changed for the better. With the support of his union Unity, he became an apprentice at Wedgwood.

    A great scheme with employer and union working closely together. And, in the three years since, David has never looked back. He’s now got a highly-skilled job at the company’s visitor centre. And is looking forward to a bright future.

    And just a couple of weeks ago I visited the BMW mini plant at Cowley. Thanks to a strong, well-organised site, the company has made a huge investment to secure the future of both Oxford and Swindon.

    But the investment isn’t just in new kit and technology. Unite the union have ensured it’s in people too, including a top class apprenticeship programme that is helping young men and young women become the skilled workforce of the future. What’s more those apprentices are all union members.

    This is the difference that only union learning can make.

    Because we know that the best way to empower individual workers is through collective action. As the old trade union adage goes, together we are stronger.

    And if anybody ever doubts that, I say let’s set the record straight. Tell them about the 220,000 workers we helped last year. Tell them about the men and women able to read to their kids for the first time, or speak a foreign language for the first time, or go to university for the first time.

    Conference; trades unionism transforms lives.

    Our work on learning is our movement at its best.

    Positive, progressive, popular.

    Focused firmly on the future.

    Making our economy stronger and more productive.

    Our society fairer and more mobile.

    Our country brighter and more hopeful.

    But for all the progress we have made, we still have a mountain to climb. In the autumn, the OECD laid bare the scale of the skills challenge facing Britain, how far we have slipped behind our competitors. In a damning report, the international organisation pointed to the huge training divide in our workplaces.

    It underlined big skills gaps among young people, older workers and the disadvantaged. Revealed major weaknesses around intermediate and technical skills. And showed how inequality and poor skills are fundamentally and inextricably linked.

    As trades unionists, we know we won’t address the former unless we crack the latter. In the long run, democratising education is the only sustainable way to make Britain more equal. Making learning for life, for all, a reality.

    And self-evidently, what happens at work will be crucial. Now there are lots of good employers who make a real effort to train all their staff. ut it’s a sad fact that far too many organisations still neglect their responsibilities.

    We know that nearly half the UK workforce do not receive training at work.

    A national scandal.

    And it’s those whose skills needs are most acute – migrant workers; people on zero hours contracts; agency staff – who are losing out the most.

    It’s the same old story. The lion’s share of development opportunities going to the privileged few, the privately-educated elite who control so much of our national life. And working-class people all too often passed by. Simply left alone to learn to labour.

    Righting this wrong – getting the pendulum swinging the other way – is why everything we do around the learning and skills agenda is so massively important.

    And I’m proud that there is so much great work going on as I speak. To mention just a few examples:

    We’re working with the National Numeracy charity, employers and education providers to boost numeracy skills.

    We’re doing pioneering work to help workers in mid-career, with our joint project with NIACE attracting double the expected take-up.

    And we’re making further improvements to trade union education, already recognised as among the best in the world.

    TUC Ed is of course a critical part of the unionlearn offer. Last year, we trained 43,000 reps in the classroom and online. With a further 5,000 learning through e-Notes, our web-based service.

    Trade union education is education with a purpose and we’re making a big impact in workplaces right across the country.

    Let’s be clear: union learning reps are vital. But the success of union learning also depends on having well trained convenors, shop stewards, workplace reps and branch activists too.

    Today we are launching a new study – “Still Making a Difference” – which underlines the continuing importance of our work. Copies are available here in the hall and online.

    And I want to thank the 2,000-plus reps – including many learning reps – who took the time to give us detailed feedback for the report.

    Conference, it doesn’t matter whether it’s Trade Union Education or union learning, we need to set our sights high.

    And as the election approaches, I see three areas where can really shape the policy debate.

    The first is young people. With youth unemployment still a terrible blight in our communities and nearly a million under-25s out of work, this is a huge challenge for all of us.

    And whether it’s facilitating work placements or improving the new traineeships schemes, trade unions are helping our young people gain a foothold in the world of work. Giving lie to the myth that we’re only here to look after people already in a job.

    The second area where we can lead from the front is apprenticeships. I’m proud that we’ve led the argument about the quality of schemes, really shaping the political consensus. In place of six-month long sham apprenticeships, we’ve shown that Britain needs proper schemes with good off-the-job training and decent terms and conditions.

    And trade unions are in a unique position to make sure that happens. Last year, almost 6,000 apprenticeships were supported by ULF projects – a big increase on the previous figure. From the NHS to McVities, from the Fire & Rescue Service to Heathrow Airport, from Network Rail to Wolverhampton City Council, we’re working with employers in every sector of the economy.

    Raising standards.

    Raising expectations.

    Raising quality.

    And we should all be incredibly proud of that work.

    Conference, the third area where we can shape the debate is intermediate and higher skills. It would be a big mistake to assume our work on learning was targeted only at lower-skilled workers.

    We’re putting a lot of work into continuous professional development, helping workers with intermediate and higher skills move on to the next level. And we’re also addressing Britain’s chronic shortfall of technical skills – especially in science, engineering and technology.

    Through our “Technician Pathways” project, we’re promoting the professional standing of technicians. Not just recognising the huge contribution they make to our economic life, but extending career development opportunities to this crucial group of workers.

    Conference: tackling youth unemployment; making apprenticeships better; improving our technical and higher skills. These are the some of the huge challenges facing Britain today.

    And our movement is showing that we’re a big part of the answer. Ultimately our work on learning and skills is about winning a better deal for working people.

    The theme of our conference this year is “Britain needs a pay rise”. But in the long run, we’re not going to get a pay rise without a productivity rise. And we’re not going to get a productivity rise without a skills rise.

    That’s why what we do matters so much.

    Learning reps, course tutors, project workers, education providers, support staff – together we are helping to deliver the learning revolution Britain needs.

    Giving all working people – regardless of class, gender, race, age, ability or background – the chance to fulfil their true potential at work and in life.

    A genuinely noble cause.

    So my message to you today is simple:

    Keep up the good work.

    Keep innovating.

    And keep changing lives.

  • Robert Goodwill – 2015 Speech on Prestwick Search and Rescue

    robertgoodwill

    Below is the text of the speech made by Robert Goodwill, the Minister of State at the Department of Transport, on 17 December 2015.

    Thank you for inviting me to lead celebrations for the launch of the UK’s search and rescue helicopter service here in Prestwick.

    Today (18 December 2015) we mark a historic occasion; the passing of search and rescue operations from the British military to Bristow Helicopters Ltd, operating on behalf of Her Majesty’s Coastguard.

    I would like to start by paying tribute to the Royal Navy’s search and rescue unit at HMS Gannet.

    From 1 January, the unit will stand down responsibility for search and rescue duties and will hand that responsibility over to the Bristow crew here at Prestwick.

    The UK government is very grateful for the lifesaving work you have done since HMS Gannett was established here in Prestwick in 1971, and will continue to do until the end of the year.

    It cannot be overstated how much we all appreciate the vital work of the Royal Navy and Royal Air Force search and rescue helicopter crews and engineers.

    For over 60 years, you have worked around the clock in all weathers to rescue tens of thousands of people, and in doing so have saved many lives.

    You have set the bar for search and rescue very high indeed.

    It now falls to Bristow to continue to clear that high bar.

    And after the response to the recent flooding, when new Bristow aircraft from Caernarfon and Humberside joined forces with the Sea King from HMS Gannet to rescue people in danger, I am confident that Bristow will do their search and rescue forerunners very proud.

    Of course, Bristow has been rendering search and rescue services to Her Majesty’s Government for over 30 years.

    And that service will continue here in Prestwick and in 9 other places around the UK.

    Your job is the single-minded pursuit of saving lives.

    You will work with the best technology.

    The best aircraft.

    And the finest, most well-trained, and dedicated people the world of search and rescue has to offer.

    Many people here today will be based at this facility and have joined from other parts of Bristow’s SAR operations.

    Others have taken the decision to leave behind their military careers to stay with search and rescue.

    And still others are volunteers.

    I am very proud to speak on behalf of the whole of Her Majesty’s government when I express our gratitude for the daring and endeavour of those who go out in all weathers, night or day, at a moment’s notice, to bring people in danger safely back to dry land and their homes and families, or indeed to, sadly, have to recover the bodies of those lost at sea.

    Of course, the crews could not do their jobs but for the highly-skilled engineers and support staff also here today.

    I know that everyone will carry out their jobs with the utmost professionalism and commitment to their task.

    And in doing so, you will be working with some magnificent machines.

    As minister responsible for Her Majesty’s Coastguard, I am delighted to see these wonderful Sikorsky aircraft bearing HM Coastguard livery.

    Sikorsky has provided search and rescue helicopters for coastguard operations since 1983, starting with the Sikorsky S61s which operated from the coastguard base in Shetland.

    Over 20 state-of-the-art aircraft like the ones you see here today are already operating throughout the UK as part of our new UK search and rescue helicopter service, operated and maintained by 200 pilots, technical crew, and engineers.

    And they are just one example of the state-of-the-art search and rescue technologies that will be available at Prestwick and across the UK.

    The UK government has put £2 billion into our search and rescue services and over £70 million of that has been spent here in Prestwick.

    It’s a great example of where the UK government is co-ordinating vital work across the whole country.

    So I know this facility will give you the very best chance of succeeding in your missions.

    And I wish you many, many successful missions in the years ahead.

    So thank you for the work you do.

    Thank you for serving our country.

    And thank you, ahead of time, for all the lives you will save from Prestwick and the 9 other bases across the UK.

  • David Cameron – 2015 Press Conference on EU Council

    davidcameron

    Below is the text of the press conference statement made by David Cameron, the Prime Minister, in Brussels on 18 December 2015.

    This European Council has focused on 3 issues – the UK renegotiation, migration and terrorism.

    I talked about the renegotiation last night and I will come back to it shortly – but first the other 2 issues.

    Migration

    Yesterday afternoon, we discussed the ongoing migration crisis facing Europe.

    Even with the onset of winter, there are still many migrants coming to Europe – with around 5,000 arriving via the eastern Mediterranean route each day.

    Britain has its own strict border controls, which apply to everyone attempting to enter the United Kingdom.

    And every day those border controls are helping to keep us safe.

    But while we are outside Schengen, we are ready to help our European partners secure their borders.

    From the start, the United Kingdom has called for a comprehensive approach that tackles the root causes of this migration crisis – not just the consequences of vast numbers reaching Europe.

    That’s why we have provided £1.2 billion in humanitarian assistance for the Syrian conflict and deployed HMS Enterprise and police officers to the Mediterranean to go after the traffickers.

    And it’s why we have offered practical assistance to help with the registering and fingerprinting of migrants in countries where they land, like Greece and Italy.

    Indeed, we have provided more technical expertise to the European Asylum Support Office than any other country.

    Here at this summit, we discussed the importance of implementing the measures previously agreed.

    Back in the summer, after some very frank discussions, countries committed to resettle 22,000 refugees from Syria over 2 years and to relocate 160,000 migrants arriving in ‘hotspots’ to other participating countries.

    It’s clear from what others have said that very few have been relocated or settled.

    Alongside this I announced that the United Kingdom would resettle 20,000 Syrian refugees during this Parliament.

    And we are meeting the ambition we set out since September, we have resettled over 1,000 Syrian refugees from camps in Turkey, Jordan and Lebanon.

    They are in homes, their children are in schools and they can look forward to the New Year free from the fear of uncertainty and with the prospect of building a new life in Britain.

    And the United Kingdom will continue to play our full part in helping all those affected by the Syrian crisis with the conference we will co-host with Germany, Kuwait, Norway and the UN next February.

    Terrorism

    Turning to terrorism.

    The horrific attacks in Paris last month underline the threat we all face from Daesh.

    What happened on a Friday night last month in Paris could have happened in any European city.

    We face a common threat. No one country can defeat it alone. We have to defeat it together.

    We made important progress last week with provisional agreement between the Council and the European Parliament on new rules to share passenger name records. This is an absolutely vital piece of work.

    But there is more we must do.

    We need more systematic data sharing so we can track down and stop terrorists.

    We must step up our co-operation on aviation security.

    We need to go after Daesh’s finances, choking off the oil and money.

    We should do more to counter the extremists’ propaganda and their poisonous narrative.

    And we must clamp down on firearms and explosives – stopping them from getting into the hands of evil terrorists who are determined to wreak such misery with them.

    And I am pleased that we have got a very clear agreement here to rapidly take forward proposals on all these areas.

    All of this requires closer co-operation, right now.

    Security

    Common to both the challenge of migration and the threat of terrorism is the instability in Libya and Syria.

    That’s why it’s so important that we work together to support strong, stable and inclusive governance in these countries.

    Here today, we have reiterated the EU’s support for the efforts of the International Syria Support Group to end the conflict in Syria through a political process.

    And we welcome the agreement reached in Morocco yesterday that we hope will pave the way for a new united national government in Libya.

    In an unstable world, Britain is playing a leading role in the EU on issues of security – working with other member states so we better protect our people.

    And that underlines why this renegotiation is so important.

    UK renegotiation

    As I said last night, we have made good progress.

    We are a step closer to agreement on the significant and far-reaching reforms I have proposed.

    It is going to be tough and there is lots of hard work to do.

    But I believe 2016 will be the year we achieve something really vital fundamentally changing the UK’s relationship with the EU and finally addressing the concerns of the British people about our membership.

    Then it will be for British people to decide whether we remain or leave.

    It is a choice we will all need to think hard about.

    But I believe if we can get these reforms right – and I believe we can I firmly believe that for our economic security and for increasing our national security, the best future for Britain is in a reformed European Union.

    Happy to take some questions. Let’s start with the BBC.

    Question

    Prime Minister, thank you. Laura Kuenssberg, BBC News. You’ve just given a very clear hint that the vote on our membership of the European Union will be in 2016. Previous major changes in the European Union have taken a long time. The Amsterdam Treaty took 2 years; the Maastricht Treaty took 2 years. How can we be confident that changes you want – if they are a big deal – can be done in 2 months?

    And if I may, on Libya, are UK troops going to be intervening?

    Prime Minister

    Okay, first of all, in terms of changes, I’ve been working on this with a clear mandate from the British people ever since the election back in May. And a lot of work has been done. What matters is that these changes are legally binding and irreversible, and I believe we can find ways of setting that out, demonstrating that, in the coming months. Obviously, I want a deal in February, but I’ve set the deadline for the referendum as the end of 2017. I always wanted to give myself time to get this right. What matters is the substance – is getting it right, rather than the timing. That’s the first point.

    On Libya, what has happened is a good step forward. It’s not perfect, because not everyone involved in these Libyan political discussions has joined the new government, but we’ve always said that we stand ready to support them with resources, with training, with advice, with capacity building. But frankly, the last thing a new Libyan government wants is a lot of foreign troops on its soil. That is not what we’re proposing. It’s about helping them to build the capacity of a government to run that country.

    And why that has a direct impact on us, as it were, back at home, is these 2 reasons. One is, because Libya had become a broken state, the criminal gangs were able to use it as a jumping off point for the migrant boats across the Med, and there weren’t proper authorities for us to work with in Libya to put a stop to that. So the government of Libya is absolutely crucial in being able to deliver an end to that migration route.

    But secondly, and in many ways even more significantly, because there is now presence of Daesh in Libya, we need a government to be our partner and work with us – and we should work with them – to do the right thing for their country, which is to make sure that Daesh cannot have a foothold in that country.

    So it’s early days; it is an agreement signed rather than a government actually in place, but we should do everything we can to back it and support it. ITV?

    Question

    Prime Minister, there were reports this morning that you’re being offered an emergency break on in-work benefits for EU migrants, when Brussels agrees the public services risk being under – overwhelmed. Would that remotely be enough?

    Prime Minister

    Well, what I’ve said is, look, my proposal – the 4-year proposal remains on the table. What happened last night is that the European Commission said that they were looking for solutions, not compromises, but were in a negotiation. And I’m convinced that if we work hard between now and February, we’ll find a good answer. George?

    Question

    George Parker, from the Financial Times. Can I ask another question specific to the renegotiation, about the – your idea of re-designating the EU as a multi-currency union. Are you running into any resistance on that? We hear the President of the European Central Bank is concerned that if you make this explicit that some countries, for example Poland, might see that – decide that they no longer have to join the euro.

    Prime Minister

    Well, there was a lot of discussion about this last night. I think there was a recognition that it’s a statement of fact that the EU has many currencies within it. Now obviously it’s important not just that we say that, but then we go one step further and make sure that you’re not disadvantaged in the single market if you’re outside the single currency. And I think there was a very good discussion about that last night. Of course, countries in the eurozone want to know that they can press ahead with vital integration that they might need without us outside the eurozone stopping them.

    And I’ve said, look, my whole point is, I don’t want to stand in the way of the things the eurozone needs to do to make that currency work well. It’s in our interests that it does work well, but likewise it’s very important that we have a set of principles that Britain and other countries outside the euro can’t be put at a disadvantage. And you know, at the heart of this is this issue of not being liable in any way to have your taxpayers’ money spent on eurozone-related issues.

    Now, there was a risk of that in the summer, as you know, of the European stability – financial stability mechanism being used to bail out Greece. We stopped that from happening, but we shouldn’t have to, you know, make ad hoc efforts to stop that happening. It should be written down, clearly, the principles of no disadvantage, of no discrimination, of eurozone countries having to pay for eurozone issues.

    So it’s – you know, as I said last night, none of the 4 issues are easy to deliver. It’s a mistake to think you’ve got 3 baskets that are progressing towards completion and the fourth is the one with the – all the difficulties in. Each of these areas have problems that need to be resolved. But I felt that in each of the areas there’s sufficient good will to overcome difficulties and come up with a good solution. And in all these areas, as the Commission has said, you know, you’ve got to find answers rather than unsustainable compromises.

    Sky News.

    Question

    Prime Minister, so we now start an 8-week period where Donald Tusk looks for some sort of compromise that meets your needs on migration. Can you guarantee that whatever comes out of this will actually help control EU migration and will lessen EU migration into the United Kingdom?

    Prime Minister

    The whole aim of this is if you stand back from it all why have I chosen these 4 areas? Well they are the 4 things that I think most concern Britain about Europe. People are concerned that it’s becoming a single currency only club and you need guarantees that if you’re outside the single currency you can have the flexibility and the success you need. People want to know, in Britain particularly, that it’s not an ever closer union, that we’re carved out of that. People want to know it adds to competitiveness, not takes away from competitiveness.

    And, yes, people want to know that we can help relieve some of the pressure in terms of the movement of people across Europe. Not because Britain is unwelcoming. We’re an incredibly welcoming country. We have one of the most cosmopolitan countries on Earth and people come to Britain and work hard and make a life for themselves. And that strengthens our country. But the British people, and I totally share this view, feel that in recent years the pressure of new arrivals has just been too great.

    And part of that pressure is caused by the fact that we have a very generous top-up welfare system which means sometimes that you could – you know, you can train as a – a nurse or a doctor in some less well-off European countries and having finished your training it actually pays you to work in an unskilled job in the United Kingdom rather than continue as a nurse or a doctor in your own country. Now that doesn’t make sense for either side in the European Union and actually there’s a lot of recognition of that that, you know, countries in southern Europe they want to keep the – those talented people to help build their countries.

    So while of course there’s a very lively debate and discussion – there was a lively debate and discussion last night. There is an understanding that this is not some unreasonable request. This is a serious issue. It has real impacts for both Britain and for other countries as well. So, yes, as I’ve said, what we’re looking for is a solution rather than just some sort of compromise that won’t have the effect that we want it to – to have. I think the British people fully understand this as well. They know how important the issue of welfare is.

    And if you go back to what I said at the election, you know, I basically said on welfare I said there were 4 things we wanted to achieve. First that people who come to Britain cannot claim unemployment benefit for the first 6 months. Well, we’re well on the way to achieving that with the introduction of universal credit. And that is backed and allowed by the European Union. The second thing I said was that people who can’t find a job after 6 months they have to go home. Again that is now pretty much in place. The third thing was the issue of sending child benefit home. I think we’re making very good – not being able to send child benefit home where there’s good progress made in the discussions last night. And the fourth thing was the 4 – no in-work benefit for 4 years where, yes, there’s the lively discussion. The proposal remains on the table and the European Commission has said they’re looking for solutions not compromises.

    So I think that is good progress, going back to Laura’s question, in terms of what’s been achieved in the 7 months since the election. You know, we said we’d have a referendum. We’ve passed that legislation. It’s now part of the law of the land. We’ve said we’d have a renegotiation. A lot of people said, you know, “You won’t get 27 other countries to sit down and renegotiate with you.” Well, we have. It’s well under way. We’re making progress in all the 4 areas. Now we’ve got a pretty tight deadline, I accept, to bring it to a close by February. But, you know, I think there’s sufficient goodwill to have a really good go at that. But I’ve left myself some room. I want to get the substance right. This is not about artificial timetables and deadlines and all the rest of it. There’s plenty of time to get the substance that the British people need.

    Because this is a massive decision for our country. You think of the terrorists and the security threats that we face. You think of the situation brought about by what Russia has done in Ukraine. You think of the instability in the Middle East, the terrorist threat that that is generating. I think we are better off standing together with our allies and partners in a reformed Europe. But we need to get that reformed Europe in order to make that happen. That’s why if anything this renegotiation has got more important. Because it’s so vital for the future of Britain and I would argue for Europe that we get it right.

    And there was a lot of recognition of that last night, of people starting their speeches not by saying they all believe Britain is better off in Europe. They started their speeches by saying that Europe would be better off with Britain in. So this renegotiation has got more important. It certainly hasn’t been solved or fixed but we are well on the way to a deal. We’ve taken some good steps forward. Now we’ve got to bring it home. Thank you very much.

  • George Osborne – 2015 Speech on Daesh

    gosborne

    Below is the text of the speech made by George Osborne, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, at the United Nations Security Council in New York, United States, on 18 December 2015.

    Thank you very much, and let me begin as others have done by congratulating you, Jack, for suggesting this meeting, where the finance ministers of the Security Council came together for the first time in the history of the United Nations. And let me congratulate the Secretary-General and the head of the Financial Action Taskforce for the leadership they have shown on this issue.

    Let me start by offering my condolences and the condolences of the British people for those who lost their lives in Paris as a result of those dreadful attacks, but also of course those who lost their lives in Ankara, in Beirut, in California, and indeed the Russian holidaymakers travelling home from Sharm el Sheikh who lost their lives.

    Of course, these acts of violence were designed to intimidate and divide us but they have failed and I think it’s very striking, if you look at this table, this Security Council room, this is often where divisions of the world have been most evident, yet today the unity of the world is on display and far from dividing us, actually the terrorists in Daesh and ISIL are actually uniting us and we are determined to take the fight to them, to deprive them of their financing and to defeat them.

    Now, of course, all of us around this table have been grappling with threat that terrorism poses. In the last year alone, in the United Kingdom, our security forces have prevented 7 different plots to attack citizens in the United Kingdom. But I would say this, at a time when people question whether we can defeat these terrorists, we are defeating these terrorists and we are making progress. In the last year, the coalition against Daesh/ISIL has liberated over 40 percent of the territory under their control in Iraq. We are stemming the flow of foreign fighters to their ranks, we are exploiting the vulnerabilities in their financial network and we’re successfully targeting their oil supply. And as British Prime Minister David Cameron said here at the United Nations in September, we are leading the efforts to tackle their propaganda so that fewer people around the world are influenced by their message of hate.

    Now we know that those who seek to commit acts of terror will not stop, and so neither should our resolve to defeat them. And when our values, democracy and freedom are threatened, when efforts are made to undermine the international peace and security that this Council protects, we must all unite to condemn those actions and prevent further tragedy.

    Since the council first adopted resolution 1267 back in 1999, the threat from terrorism has evolved. In Daesh we face a new type of threat, oppressing those in the territory that they physically control, inspiring foreign terrorist fighters to join their cause in places like Syria and Iraq and now of course potentially in Libya too, and radicalizing individuals to inspire them to commit atrocities at home. It’s a new breed of terrorism and a challenge for us as governments and the international community and it calls for a new response and today I think we’re making significant further steps to strengthen that response. I very much welcome the adoption of the very comprehensive resolution today, and thank the Secretary-General and his team at the UN for their work on this agenda.

    I just wanted to briefly set out the areas that the UK judges to be key to strengthening the global efforts to combat terrorist financing, combat the financing of Daesh and make full use of this resolution.

    First, I want us to ensure that we’re using the existing tools we have to combat the threat of terrorist financing to their full effect. In September this year the United Kingdom put forward a list of names of British nationals who have travelled to Syria and recommended them for listing them under UN sanctions. Today, I would urge other Member States to do the same. To propose the designation of individuals who pose a real threat, so their assets can be frozen around the world and we can cut off the resources they need before they can commit their planned acts of terror. Domestically too we must ensure we are using our counter terrorist financing regimes to full effect. I agree with what Secretary-General was saying earlier, we need to make sure that all members ensure they have a regime in place that criminalizes the financing of terrorists for any purpose, and that they implement the UN sanctions regime to fully and promptly and I thought this was a point that the President of FATF raised and was an extremely important one, this gap between the sanctions being announced and the sanctions being implemented is crucial in a world where you can move money in matter of seconds.

    In the United Kingdom, we’ve taken a long look at our regime and I can confirm today that we will legislate domestically to make sure we can implement UN sanctions without any delay. We are currently like other members of the European Union, reliant on an EU process that takes too long, and we want to work with our partners in the European Union to streamline that process and to make it more rapid, and to make sure we at European level are able to implement UN designations immediately.

    Second, I want to make sure that we are responding to the evolving nature of the terrorist threats with new measures too. We’ve already heard today about the value of the Syrian oil fields to Daesh, that this alone is providing them with millions of dollars a day, estimated $1.5 million each day. We know that military action which the United Kingdom through our air forces, proud to be taking with our allies is having success in limiting this resource, this oil money. But let us as finance ministers also take action too, we should make clear as we do with this resolution today that the UN sanctions regime can and will be used to target not just the terrorists but the traders, the middlemen, the people who facilitate the illegal trade in oil which provides Daesh with one of its principal sources of revenue and we should apply the same focus on the illegal trade in cultural artefacts, which I thought the finance minister of Jordan spoke very powerfully about. We are seeing literally the history of some of these countries being stolen from them, and there is much more we can do, frankly, to shine a light on this opaque trade in cultural artefacts.

    But of course, as we limit one arm of Daesh’s financial network, we know they’ll attempt to strengthen another, so we must be ready to respond to their evolving financial needs, such as financing through kidnap for ransom or organized crime. And I’m delighted that the resolution makes that clear as well. And I also want to look at new ways of gathering and sharing information internationally between our law enforcement agencies and indeed, domestically between law enforcement agencies and the private sector including our banking systems. This was a point that was raised by a number of speakers and I think it’s a very important one. And we are taking steps in UK as the home of one of world’s largest, indeed the world’s largest financial centre, we’re taking steps to make sure we have that partnership with the financial sector, working together to tackle illicit financial flows.

    The third and final point I want to make is this. I want to make sure that this group continues to work together to consider how we implement the recommendations, on how we do more to tackle terrorist financing, because as the threat is constantly evolving, so must our response to match it. I welcome the special meeting of Financial Action Taskforce last weekend, specifically focused on our collective response to terrorist financing. In particular, I was pleased to see a commitment from the group to update their report on Daesh financing, working with the counter-ISIL finance group and others. And I think it would be sensible for finance ministers to perhaps meet again in the Security Council in the months ahead at some point to review the evolving situation and to consider proposals for further measure. Let’s be clear, passing a resolution is one thing, implementing the resolution is of course another, and we’ve all committed to report to United Nations on the progress we make on that and I think that’s something that we should therefore put into action.

    So that’s where I see the priorities for action, ensuring we’re making the most of existing tools we’ve got, implementing new measures to respond to the particular threat that Daesh poses to us, and continuing to work together to develop our response further and reporting back here at the United Nations until we fully destroy this evil.

    Thank you.

  • Philip Hammond – 2015 Speech on Syria

    philiphammond

    Below is the text of the speech made by Philip Hammond, the Foreign Secretary, at the United Nations Security Council in New York, United States, on 18 December 2015.

    Thank you Mr. President.

    Let me begin by thanking the Secretary-General, and his Special Envoy Staffan de Mistura for all that they are doing to bring the Syrian parties together.

    And let me also thank you Secretary Kerry for the characteristic drive and energy that you have brought over recent months to this process in establishing the International Syria Support Group. This has given new international momentum towards the resumption of Syrian-led talks and has brought us to this important occasion today.

    The resolution we have adopted today is a further step in this work. Sadly, it is far too soon for any of us to predict an end to the Syria conflict, but I hope that we will look back on today as a significant step in that direction. Frankly, on Syria this Council has too seldom found the unity it needed to live up to its responsibility for delivering peace and security, despite some useful but only partially implemented Resolutions. This has to change.

    No country, no person who has been involved in Syria’s destruction in the last four years can take any satisfaction from what has happened. On the Syria dossier we have to concede we have all failed; we have all been losers; but by far the greatest losers are the people of Syria themselves. We have to do better and we have to do better fast if there is not be still more suffering.

    The participants in the ISSG came together behind a single aim: to support the Syrian parties to find an end to the conflict and tackle the terrorists currently operating in their country. We all share the sense of urgency which comes from witnessing the continuing deterioration of the humanitarian and security situation in Syria. The Syrian population, over 250,000 of whom have been killed and millions more forced from their homes, have borne the brunt of this conflict. This is not a humanitarian disaster; it is a humanitarian catastrophe.

    The ongoing indiscriminate use of weapons on civilians, especially artillery and aerial bombardments, including barrel bombs, continues to cause terror, destruction and civilian deaths. And while Daesh poses a real threat to Syrians as well as to the wider region, it is Asad who bears the responsibility for the majority of the deaths in Syria.

    Mr President,

    I commend Saudi Arabia for convening a broad cross-section of representatives of the Syrian opposition in Riyadh earlier this month. The agreement reached at that meeting in Riyadh and the formation of a high negotiating committee showed the determination of the Syrian Opposition groups to come together, whatever their differences, to play a crucial, constructive role in talks. They reaffirmed their commitment to implementation of the Geneva Communique, working towards a managed transition away from Asad and a pluralistic future for Syria.

    I welcome too Jordan’s efforts to build consensus on identifying terrorist groups operating in Syria. Whilst it is for this Council ultimately to decide to designate any such groups, the ISSG is in a privileged position to provide information, analysis and advice to the Council to assist it. We believe that it will take time to mature that view and we are able to test which groups are willing to commit to a political process and a ceasefire.

    Mr President,

    I would like to turn to the content of the Resolution and highlight the areas that will be critical to the progress of talks.

    First, all of us – both in this Council and in the broader international community – want to see a national ceasefire established. To have a realistic chance of success, a ceasefire must be closely aligned to progress on political transition and talks between the Syrian parties and under UN auspices. We’ve seen previous attempts to end the conflict in Syria undermined by a lack of determination by the parties to contribute productively to talks.

    It is critical that the voices of all Syrians are heard in this process, including Syrian women and members of Syrian minorities.

    Second, there needs to be confidence amongst the parties that the political process will deliver real results, without which neither the talks nor the ceasefire will be successful. This will not be easy: 5 years of conflict has eroded confidence.

    Therefore all parties must undertake Confidence Building Measures, some of which are identified in the resolution we’ve passed today. We welcome the work being undertaken by the UN to this end, and towards modalities for a ceasefire as mandated by this Resolution.

    All parties have a duty to take care in their military actions not to cause the death of civilians whether by deliberate or by reckless targeting. The indiscriminate use of weapons, especially the use of artillery and aerial bombardments including barrel bombs, must stop. Medical facilities and schools have increasingly become a target for aerial bombardment, something that is abhorrent to all of us and must stop.

    All parties must adhere to their duties under International Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law. They must allow humanitarian agencies rapid, safe and unhindered access throughout Syria by most direct routes. There are 13.5 million Syrians in need of humanitarian assistance. These people need to see a change to their lives if they are to have confidence in this political process and to feel its benefits. The UK is the second largest bilateral donor to the humanitarian effort in response to the Syrian conflict after the United States. But let us all do more on this front.

    This resolution also repeats a commitment to political transition in Syria, following the principles of the Geneva Communiqué in full, and leading to free and fair elections under a new Syrian constitution within 18 months. This will involve the establishment of a Transitional Governing Body with full executive powers and representative of all Syrians, which provides the framework for talks and an end to the conflict.

    This process necessarily involves the departure of Bashar al-Asad. Not only for moral reasons, because of the destruction he has unleashed upon his own people, but also for practical reasons, because it will never be possible to bring peace and unity to Syria as long as he remains in office. But we must and will protect the institutions that are necessary for the future governance, and that will be possible with a representative Transitional Governing Body and with the support of the ISSG.

    Mr President,

    Whilst we must seek to end the conflict in Syria, especially the violence that is directed against civilians, we must also join in confronting the threat posed by Daesh and other extremist groups in the country. An end to the civil war in Syria is critical to tackling Daesh in the long term. We are all clear that terrorist groups must not and will not benefit from ceasefire we are promoting.

    A key consideration for the Syrians in the establishment of the Transitional Governing Body will be the fight against terrorism. In this fight they will have the full support of the ISSG and of the Global Coalition. Following the appalling attacks in Sinai, Beirut, Ankara and Paris, this Council unanimously decided to adopt resolution 2249 which calls on countries to use all necessary means to combat Daesh. The UK responded to this resolution by extending the airstrikes we were already carrying out in Iraq against Daesh into Syria.

    In this regard it is vital that those countries that claim to be fighting Daesh do what they say, rather than directing the bulk of their attacks against non-extremist opposition groups. There is clear evidence over the last weeks that the weakening such groups has created opportunities for the expansion of Daesh in some areas, the very opposite of the stated objective.

    Mr President,

    As well as focusing on the immediate threats, we must also prepare for the future in Syria. We must affirm our commitment to assist in the post-conflict reconstruction of the country. Next February, in close partnership with Germany, Norway, Kuwait and the UN, the UK will co-host a conference in London on humanitarian support for Syria including a focus on civilian protection as well as planning for stabilisation. Of course Mr President, that conference will seek to raise the funding that is necessary to meet the United Nations appeal to support those displaced by the humanitarian crisis. But the UK is also committed to support post-conflict reconstruction efforts in Syria and has already committed to provide at least 1.5 billion dollars to this work in the long term in addition to the over 1.64 billion dollars we have so far given in humanitarian aid and I hope in February we will see others committing to both the immediate challenge and to the long term challenge of reconstruction.

    In conclusion Mr President,

    The conflict in Syria is now almost 5 years old. In that time more than 250,000 Syrians have been killed. We all have a duty to prevent further slaughter.

    Despite the important step we have taken with today’s Resolution, despite the progress we made in Vienna, despite the important steps forward made at the meeting in Riyadh the week before last, there is still a very long way to go.

    And to have a chance of success, the United Nations will need the clear and continued support of the International Syria Support Group and I know that I can say that it will have the support of that group.

    But above all, we need Syrian leaders of all persuasions to take responsibility for the future of their country and to take the tough decisions needed to bring about a lasting political settlement and an end to the conflict.

    Because we can help, but only Syrians can bring an end to Syrian suffering.

    Thank you.

  • David Gauke – 2015 Speech on Digital Tax

    davidgauke

    Below is the text of the speech made by David Gauke, the Financial Secretary to the Treasury, at HMRC on 14 December 2015.

    Good afternoon, and welcome to HMRC’s first-ever Christmas conference.

    It’s been quite a year – two Budgets, a Spending Review, an Autumn Statement, and of course a General Election.

    Lots of work has been done, lots of changes have been put in place, and I suspect that many of you, like me, are now looking forward to some time away from the office.

    I certainly have one eye towards the upcoming Christmas festivities, as I’m sure many of you do. And as the father of three boys, I’m currently in the process of managing expectations around presents.

    We’re having mixed progress on this in the Gauke household, but it’s fair to say that digital expectations are high and will remain high. And as a government minister, I have to take some responsibility for that.

    Because the government has similarly high digital expectations for HMRC, albeit expectations that must – and will – be met, and not just for Christmas! I am confident will be met.

    In every walk of life, people are embracing the digital revolution. From banking online to doing their food shopping, from advertising a business to paying invoices, millions of individuals and businesses are benefiting from the convenience and simplicity of digital services.

    But businesses and service providers are going further than simple digital interaction with their customers – they are harnessing the opportunities of the digital age to transform how their businesses work, and how they provide their services.

    And it’s the customers who are reaping the benefits.

    If businesses can do this then so should government. Our ambition is bringing the digital revolution to Whitehall – ensuring that the services it provides are similarly transformed. Last year for example, more than 27% of people renewed their tax credits online, almost doubling the previous year’s figure. This online renewal service has been welcomed by users with customer satisfaction rates for the service reaching over 80%.

    Life should be made easier for the customer

    The tax system is no exception.

    My ambition is to make fundamental changes to the way the tax system works, transforming tax administration to make it more effective, more efficient and easier for people and businesses to pay their taxes.

    And we have made it a priority to invest in making that a reality.

    Last month the Chancellor announced, as part of the Spending Review, a further investment of £1.3 billion to transform HMRC into one of the most digitally-advanced tax administrations in the world.

    This includes access to digital tax accounts for all small businesses and individuals by 2016-17, delivering an additional £1 billion of tax revenue by 2020-21.

    And today I have published ‘Making Tax Digital’. This sets out the overall vision to achieving this transformation, the steps needed to get there over this Parliament, and details of the consultations to follow in the coming months.

    ‘Making Tax Digital’ is structured around four foundations:

    First, ‘Tax simplified’ – All taxpayers will receive the data and services relevant to them and, for those who have difficulty going online or who need extra support, help will be available through other channels.

    Taxpayers shouldn’t have to give HMRC information that it already has, or should be able to get from elsewhere – for instance, from employers, banks, building societies and other government departments.

    Taxpayers will see the information that HMRC holds through their digital tax accounts, and be able to check at any time that their details are complete and correct.

    Better data means fewer mistakes, fewer delays, and a better outcome for all parties. This is an important development both for individuals and businesses, which Jim [Harra] will talk about in greater detail in the next session.

    HMRC will use this data to tailor the service it provides, according to each taxpayer’s individual circumstances. In 2016, HMRC will consult on how information from more third parties might reduce the reporting burden on taxpayers.

    Second, making tax digital for businesses. By 2020, most businesses, self-employed people and landlords will be required to keep track of their tax affairs digitally and update HMRC at least quarterly via their digital tax account.

    We will expect businesses to keep digital records and to update HMRC on a quarterly basis. But these updates will be done through software or apps and will be integrated into business’ digital record keeping.

    And I want to stress that this is the end of the tax return – this is not going to feel like doing four tax returns a year. Indeed, we expect these reforms to ease the admin burdens on businesses and to help them plan their cash flow more easily, by providing greater certainty about what they will owe.

    Updating HMRC directly in this way will be secure, light-touch and far less burdensome than the tax returns of today.

    In a real-time economy we should match tax more closely with the related transactions – many taxpayers have told HMRC that they want more certainty over their tax bill, and don’t want to hold on until the end of the year or even longer to find out how much they have to pay.

    Many businesses already use tools like these, but sometimes we need a catalyst to energise change. The requirement to use software or apps is this catalyst; it gives business certainty in terms of direction and allows full benefit from their use to be realised.

    Over the next year, HMRC will be undertaking a wide-ranging consultation exercise, and I want to work with you in ensuring that these reforms provide the maximum possible benefit for business.

    Third, making tax digital for individual taxpayers’. By April 2016, every individual and small business will have access to a digital tax account which will be simple, personalised and secure, offering an ever-wider range of services. Individual taxpayers will be able to interact with HMRC digitally and at any time that suits them.

    Fourth and finally, tax in one place.

    At the moment, many taxpayers have to contact different parts of HMRC to find out their financial position relating to different taxes. A business may pay income tax, VAT, National Insurance or Corporation Tax; an individual may pay income tax, National Insurance contributions or student loan repayments, and receive Child Benefit; some people run a business as well as being an employee or having a pension.

    In the next five years, all taxpayers will be able to use their digital accounts to see a single, up-to-date and easy-to-follow overview of their tax affairs, just like they do in their online banking.

    Together, all these elements will ensure that, by 2020, HMRC will have moved to a fully-digital tax system.

    So I’d like to share with you what that system could look like.

    Needlessly bureaucratic form-filling will be eradicated – taxpayers will not have to tell HMRC information it already knows.

    Unnecessary time delays will also be eliminated, because the tax system will be operating much more closely to ‘real time’. This will keep everyone up to date, removing the risk of missed deadlines, unnecessary penalties, debts arising and errors in the tax system being carried forward from one year to the next.

    Importantly, taxpayers would have 24/7 access to digital accounts, as well as having a complete view of all their tax liabilities and entitlements, allowing them to send HMRC information and payments simply and efficiently.

    And for those who have difficulty going online or who need extra support, help will be available through other channels. These taxpayers will be offered alternative means of support – over the phone, through face-to-face visits or through partners in the voluntary and community sector. We will also ensure free software is available for those with the simplest affairs.

    These reforms will quite simply transform the experience of millions of taxpayers.

    You’ll hear more about these plans this afternoon, including how these will be implemented and how some aspects of their design will be the subject of further consultation.

    And I would urge you all to get involved in shaping these plans – we want them to be the best they can possibly be.

    As we make tax digital, we will need to make sure that the new plans work for you, for the taxpayer, and for the UK. So we want to hear your voice and your views. Today I have also published a discussion document on payment, and we’d welcome your comments on that.

    We very much hope that events like today, as well as our more formal consultations, will give you and the people and organisations you represent the opportunity to contribute to this work, and shape tax administration for a generation to come.

    So – before I hand back to Edward [Troup] – thank you for your work so far, have a relaxing Christmas break, and let’s continue our conversations in the New Year.

  • Tony Blair – 1999 Speech at NSPCC Full Stop Campaign Launch

    tonyblair

    Below is the text of the speech made by Tony Blair, the then Prime Minister, made at the NSPCC Full Stop Campaign Launch on 23 March 1999.

    NB – the original numbers have been lost from the transcript.

    Your Royal Highness, Ladies and Gentlemen. I am delighted and honoured to be here this morning to launch a campaign that I believe will be something very special. Something that is going to make a difference.

    Something that Jim Harding has just said sticks in my mind. Cruelty to children is not inevitable. It can be prevented. We can act effectively to tackle it. There is hope. We cannot and will not be deflected from ending it.

    Child poverty is one issue. I have no doubt the circumstances in which a child is brought up, play a huge part in their development. It is the reason for the focus of policy on social exclusion. Kids brought up in a culture of family instability, drugs, crime, poor housing and education, long-term unemployment. All these problems need to be confronted head-on. In other words, we must have both hope and ambition.

    By the end of this Parliament, we aim to lift 700,000 children out of poverty.

    All this will help. But it needs more. This campaign has one Big Idea. It is a long-term idea. It is that children are everybody’s responsibility.

    It is about personal, professional and public responsibility for children. That is, our responsibility. Everyone’s responsibility.

    Because ending cruelty is not just in the interests of children themselves.

    It is in everyone’s interest.

    The Full Stop Campaign’s goal is to end child cruelty. But it is much more than that. It is about ending cruelty and replacing it – where it exists – with positive support for parents. I therefore wholehearted endorse a strategy based on:

    – better access to help and advice for everyone – children and parents alike

    – through schools, helplines, the internet and local community organisations and networks

    – and through particular initiatives like making parks and open spaces safer for children

    – and providing a birthpack which gives guidance to new parents, for every baby born in the new millennium.

    The Government is complementing what you are doing now. We have already put in place tough legislation on sex offenders. We will support the Private Member’s Bill sponsored by Deborah Shipley, which will for the first time put the Department of Health’s Consultancy Index on a statutory footing and help to unsuitable prevent adults from working with children.

    A �0 million programme Sure Start will be available to local partnerships to deliver support services, including family support, childcare, primary healthcare, early learning and play. Some of these services may be provided in the home. The Sure Start programme will help children be ready to thrive when they reach school. Each programme will service the local community within ‘pram pushing’ distance.

    We are also undertaking a far reaching programme to improve the quality of services for vulnerable children at risk or in care. The ‘Quality Protects’ Programme to transform the quality of children’s care will be backed by a special grant of �5million.

    Through this, we will take steps to strengthen the regulatory system to ensure that all children’s homes and fostering agencies are subject to welfare inspections. We will establish a new Regional Commission for Care Standards to make sure that children’s services are properly licensed and inspected.

    We are doing this because children are central to our overall agenda for social policy. We need to break the cycle of disadvantage so that children born into poverty, or let down by the education system, or abused, are not condemned to social exclusion and deprivation in adulthood. So throughout their childhood, children must get a better deal.

    As Prince Andrew said, as a father he supports this campaign. It is as a father I support this campaign. The government supports this campaign.

    The private passion we feel for our children should become the public passion we feel for our children.

    I believe ending cruelty to children is the right idea at the right time. It is the best way to invest in the future. We all have a part to play. Let it be our ambition for Britain for the new Millennium.

  • Tony Blair – 1999 Speech at Maths 2000 Conference

    tonyblair

    Below is the text of the speech made by Tony Blair, the then Prime Minister, at the Maths 2000 Conference held on 16 March 1999.

    This conference is to announce that next year will be Maths Year 2000 – following this year’s National Year of Reading.

    But let me start with the bigger picture.

    Education is this government’s top priority. That is why we are investing an extra £19 billion in education over the next three years, an unprecedented commitment to our children’s future.

    It is investment for modernisation and higher standards at every level. Because without change, we will never achieve our goals.

    Our programme of modernisation extends right across the education system:

    • A huge expansion of nursery and under-fives provision, to give our children the best possible start in life.
    • A transformation in the teaching of the basics in primary schools, so that all 11-year-olds are up to standard in literacy and numeracy.
    • A modernisation of the comprehensive system – including a significant increase in the number of specialist and beacon schools – so that secondary schools develop the skills of young people of all abilities.
    • A reform of the teaching profession, to reward performance properly and to improve the status, training and reputation of a profession which has been undervalued for too long.
    • A reform of further and higher education, raising standards, extending opportunities, and modernising the system of student finance to make it sustainable for the next generation.

    This is the big picture – a government committed to the serious investment and reform needed to create a world-class education system for this country. At every level it requires step-change – step-change in aspirations, step-change in attainment, and step-change in confidence that we can meet our goals if we resolve to do so.

    Maths Year 2000 is part of that big picture, and a key part. As a country, we have devalued mathematics for too long.

    It is frankly scandalous that four in ten of our eleven-year-olds are not up to the basic numeracy standard expected of their age. And we need to do far more to ensure that adults who lack basic numeracy skills have the opportunity to acquire them.
    This means destroying the myth that’s it’s clever to be hopeless at maths.

    The urgent priority is to improve the teaching of maths in our schools, particularly primary schools, which lay the foundations for success or failure. The national numeracy strategy, to be launched this September, is designed to achieve this.

    But we must also forge a new status for maths within society as a whole – to make numeracy more accessible, even fun. That’s what Maths Year 2000 is all about.

    We want to see projects to popularise maths in every community nationwide – involving schools, colleges, businesses, shops, the media, and voluntary organisations.

    One of the successes of the Year of Reading has been Mersey TV’s Brookside adult literacy initiative – “Brookie Basics”. I look forward to something similar for numeracy – if not on Brookside, then perhaps a venue equally popular.

    I am therefore delighted that Carol Vorderman spoke to you earlier. I’m told that her theme was ‘Why is maths so scary?’ – We need to eliminate the fear and replace it with confidence in dealing with numbers in every age group nationwide.

    It is especially important that we instil that confidence in children during their first years at school.

    A child who cannot read cannot learn. And a child who lacks confidence in arithmetic and basic maths is equally disadvantaged in modern life.

    Yet we inherited a situation where a third of our eleven-year-olds were not up to standard in English, with an even higher proportion not up to standard in maths.

    There is no more important task for us all – government, teachers, parents, business and the wider community – than putting this right.

    That’s why we launched the national literacy strategy last September, with the literacy hour and high quality training and support. This has been widely welcomed by teachers, and is already making an impact.

    Now we are doing the same with numeracy. Many primary schools already have a daily maths lesson, with structured learning programmes to support it. We are taking a big step forward, and this week will be sending comprehensive training and support materials to all schools for the new national numeracy strategy, which will lead to the numeracy hour in primary schools from this September.

    The numeracy strategy has been extensively piloted already, and has received an extremely positive response.

    Far from being regarded as an imposition, it is seen for what it is – first class support for teachers in planning and delivering maths classes, on a daily basis, to meet the expectations of parents that all children should be up to standard by the time they leave primary school.

    The training materials are only the first step. With the extra investment for education more than 300 numeracy consultants have been appointed to train and support teachers. Primary head teachers and other teachers will receive training in the next school term, and there will be additional training for schools that need it.

    We are also continuing to expand our numeracy summer school programme, which has been highly successful in raising standards. There will be more than 300 numeracy summer schools during this year’s summer holidays.

    This is an important day for head teachers, teachers, and all those involved in maths education. Maths Year 2000, and the national numeracy strategy, give us the chance to make a step-change in maths competence across society, starting in our schools.

    Our numeracy target is for 75% of all 11-year-olds to be up to standard by 2002. We are now at 59%.

    We need to commit ourselves – together – to doing everything necessary to meet the 75% target. I am convinced we can do it. The numeracy strategy is in place. We have allocated the necessary resources to back it up. The will is there. Now we need to deliver.

    There is no more important challenge facing us as a country. I wish you well in everything you are doing to make a success of Maths Year 2000 and our numeracy strategy.

  • Tony Blair – 1999 Speech at NATO’s 50th Anniversary

    tonyblair

    Below is the text of the speech made by Tony Blair, the then Prime Minister, on 8 March 1999.

    A 50th anniversary is a time to celebrate the achievements of the past and to plan ahead for the future. This conference, which I am delighted to have a chance to address, is an opportunity for open debate among friends and partners on the way ahead for the NATO Alliance, a debate which I warmly welcome. The 50th Anniversary Summit next month in Washington will be the time for decisions as well as celebration. It will shape the way we provide for our defence and security for the early part of the 21st century.

    The Alliance is fortunate to have at its helm a Secretary General of the quality and fine touch of Javier Solana. I am delighted that he will be speaking here tomorrow, and would like to thank him for all the work he has done. I am glad that Jose Cutileiro, who has steered the work of the Western European Union so ably, is also attending.
    The range of representation here today, including from countries beyond NATO’s borders – Russia, Ukraine, Central Europe, including the Baltic States, and elsewhere – shows how NATO’s horizons have widened. East and West, divided for too long, are now intertwined. NATO guaranteed the stability and defence of Western Europe since its foundation 50 years ago. It is now adapting and developing.

    But there are unique qualities which we must hold on to.
    NATO binds the United States and Canada with Europe. NATO members guarantee each others defence. We have an integrated military structure in which our forces plan for operations under a single command structure. NATO has prevented the nationalisation of defence for the first time in modern Europe. It is these qualities which have made the Alliance so strong and which we must preserve and cherish into the next century.

    PARTNERSHIP

    In the Cold War NATO’s main role was the defence of its own members in the face of a persistent and very real threat. Now, NATO exports security to others. We are now creating a framework of stability and security across the whole Euro-Atlantic area, with NATO at the core. The main tool is NATO’s Partnership for Peace programme. Partnership with 43 countries, including many who were once our adversaries.

    Our partnerships with Russia and Ukraine are the most important. Negotiated so skilfully by Secretary-General Solana, backed by the vision and good sense of US Deputy Secretary of State Strobe Talbott, who is speaking here later today, the NATO-Russia Founding Act ushered in a new era for Russian co-operation with the West. We now consult with Russia more intensively than ever before on issues ranging from proliferation and arms control to the Balkans and the Millennium Bug. The NATO-Ukraine Commission, too, is building up a track record, increasing understanding and laying the framework for working together.

    ENLARGEMENT

    Three of our Partners – Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic – have gone beyond partnership and later this week, at a ceremony at Independence, Missouri, will become members of the Alliance itself. These three countries which were fought over for too long, and this century rarely enjoyed real independence, will take the ultimate step to guarantee their defence by becoming members of the Alliance. They will also share responsibility for the defence of their fellow Allies.

    I hope they and other European countries will also become members of the European Union in a few years time. NATO and the European Union, perhaps the World’s two most successful organisations, extending their reach and the benefits they bring.

    NATO enlargement not only underpins the defence of its new members. It will also strengthen European security as a whole. Although Russia and others have their concerns, I believe these are now receding as the defensive nature of the Alliance and our wish for genuine partnership becomes clearer.

    I want the process of NATO enlargement to continue, at the right pace. At the Washington Summit, we will commit ourselves to helping other applicants to prepare themselves to come through NATO’s open door. I look forward to more countries joining once they and NATO itself are ready, and as their inclusion in the Alliance strengthens European security as a whole.

    BOSNIA AND KOSOVO

    Sadly, the countries of the former Yugoslavia have not all shared in the progress made by NATO’s partners. NATO was slow to become engaged in the Balkan wars of the 1990s. We tried to bring peace to Bosnia through the UN and with political good offices but without the willingness to use force which we now know was necessary. Our troops, under the auspices of the UN, did a good job at great risk, to deliver humanitarian relief. But they could only deal with the symptoms of the problem. It was NATO that brought serious force to bear and gave the desperately needed muscle to end the war. Since Dayton, NATO has underpinned the peace and created the conditions in which Bosnia can rebuild.

    In Kosovo, we will not repeat those early mistakes in Bosnia. We will not allow war to devastate a part of our continent, bringing untold death, suffering and homelessness. Robin Cook and Hubert Vedrine, with their partners in the Contact Group, made good progress at Rambouillet towards an interim political settlement based on substantial autonomy.

    But political agreement is not enough: the Balkans are littered with agreements that are signed but not implemented. To make an agreement work, to bring stability to Kosovo, an international force is an indispensable element. Only NATO is equipped to lead it. Either side in the negotiations can wreck the chances of full agreement. But both must understand their interest in success.

    The Kosovars should see that the time has come for the Kosovo Liberation Army to cease its operations and accept demilitarisation.
    The Serbs must reduce their forces to agreed levels and allow a NATO-led force to underpin the new autonomy arrangements.
    We will not accept prevarication in the negotiations. No side can be allowed to obstruct the process. In this crucial period President Milosevic and his commanders must also understand that NATO will not stand by in the face of renewed repression in Kosovo or atrocities like the one we witnessed recently at Racak. Nor can the International War Crimes Tribunal in The Hague.

    True peace and security will not come to the Former Yugoslavia until authoritarian, nationalist governments give way to democracy based on ideas rather than ethnicity. Free press, a market economy, responsible and accountable government and an end to repression are all essential for the long term. NATO can help by providing a stable base. But it is for the people of Serbia, Croatia and Bosnia to build their own civil societies and free institutions.

    The countries of the Former Yugoslavia will integrate into the European mainstream eventually. Their leaders and societies have to become more like their counterparts in West and Central Europe before that can happen. I expect to see further political change in the Balkans. But political change should be achieved by political means. More war will only set back those dreams of security and prosperity to which the ordinary people of the Balkans aspire.

    EUROPEAN DEFENCE

    In dealing with the Balkan wars of the 1990s the full strength of the Alliance, Europeans and Americans working together, has been needed. Alliance cohesion with a strong US role, have given clout to our political efforts, and forced the warring factions to stop fighting and start negotiating. US engagement in European security was essential to our success. It will remain essential in dealing with future wars and other profound challenges to security and stability on our continent.

    The initiative I launched last autumn on European defence is aimed at giving greater credibility to Europe’s Common Foreign and Security Policy. Far from weakening NATO this is an essential complement to the Transatlantic Alliance. We Europeans should not expect the United States to have to play a part in every disorder in our own back yard. The European Union should be able to take on some security tasks on our own, and we will do better through a common European effort than we can by individual countries acting on their own.

    Europe’s military capabilities at this stage are modest. Too modest. Too few allies are transforming their armed forces to cope with the security problems of the 1990s and the 21st century. To strengthen NATO and to make European defence a reality, we Europeans need to restructure our defence capabilities so that we can project force, can deploy our troops, ships and planes beyond their home bases and sustain them there, equipped to deal with whatever level of conflict they may face. George Robertson will address this issue in more detail when he speaks to you on Wednesday. But let me assure you of this: European defence is not about new institutional fixes. It is about new capabilities, both military and diplomatic.

    The declaration which President Jacques Chirac and I issued at St Malo was the first step to defining the new approach. We decided that we should go beyond the Berlin arrangements agreed by NATO in 1996 to give Europe a genuine capacity to act, and act quickly, in cases where the Alliance as a whole is not militarily engaged. In any particular crisis, the European Union will develop a comprehensive policy. But within that, deployment of forces is a decision for Governments. I see no role for the European Parliament or the Court of Justice. Nor will the European Commission have a decision-making role on military matters.

    Anglo-French collaboration has continued and fleshed out the practical requirements for Europeans to decide and act soundly on military matters.

    I want our Alliance as a whole to give support to these European developments. I look to our Summit in Washington to endorse some important next steps. It would be foolish and wasteful for Europe to duplicate the tried and tested military structures in which we already play a full part in the Alliance.

    We should use what we have in the Alliance. But those structures and assets need to be more readily available for European led operations and we need to be able to rely on them being available. At the same time, we European Allies need to commit ourselves at the Washington Summit to develop the full range of capabilities needed for the sort of crisis management tasks and humanitarian operations where Europe might take the lead. Only then can we make European Defence a reality.

    To retain US engagement in Europe, it is important that Europe does more for itself. A Europe with a greater capacity to act will strengthen both the European Union and the Alliance as a whole. And I want our Allies in NATO who are not members of the European Union to be able to play a full role in European operations, without reserve.

    With the Alliance’s endorsement and agreement on these points, the next step will be the WEU Ministerial in May where we shall take stock of the first part of the audit of European capabilities, which I suspect will start to reveal how much more we Europeans need. The June European Council in Cologne will be an opportunity to draw these threads together. I hope we will reach agreement there on the principles for new arrangements for security and defence in Europe, giving the European Union a direct role and a close working relationship with NATO.

    These tasks are substantial. Our responsibility is huge. 50 years ago a British Labour government helped found the NATO Alliance which locked Europe and North America safely together through all the dangerous years of the Cold War.

    We are now creating new arrangements for the 21st century. We do not know exactly what dangers lie before us, what threats we will face. We must be prepared for some difficult challenges, for decades to come. Let us lay the foundations for dealing with them now in a spirit of partnership, cooperation, interdependence and commitment.