Tag: 2005

Greg Hands – 2005 Maiden Speech in the House of Commons

The maiden speech made by Greg Hands, the then Conservative MP for Hammersmith and Fulham, in the House of Commons on 26 May 2005.

I want to speak about the threat to our local hospital in Hammersmith and Fulham: the Charing Cross. First, however, I congratulate my hon. Friends who have made their maiden speeches during this debate: my hon. Friends the Members for Broxbourne (Mr. Walker), for Welwyn Hatfield (Grant Shapps) and for The Wrekin (Mark Pritchard). I am also known as something of a polyglot, so I shall try to offer my congratulations to the hon. Members for Na h-Eileanan an Iar (Mr. MacNeil) and for Taunton (Jeremy Browne).

I want to say a few words about my predecessor as Member of Parliament for Hammersmith and Fulham, Iain Coleman. It would be fair to say that Mr. Coleman made most of his impact in the constituency. In fact, his surgeries became something of a legend locally as he seemed to spend his entire time in an almost perpetual surgery at all times and for all hours—except during Arsenal games. Mr. Coleman has not been well for a year and I am sure that hon. Members on both sides of the House will join me in wishing him a full recovery and a return to politics as soon as possible. His predecessor as MP for the Fulham part of the constituency was Matthew Carrington, who was a popular, respected and effective MP for 10 years. He was enormously supportive and helpful in my efforts to win back the seat on 5 May.

It was rather more difficult to find out about the previous Conservative MP for Hammersmith, as distinct from Fulham, because I am the first Conservative MP for Hammersmith since 1964. Probably the most famous previous Hammersmith MP was one William Bull. Mr. Bull represented the area for 37 years between 1892 and 1929. He had the unusual and tragic misfortune to lose his wife to pneumonia after she had been out canvassing for him. For someone who died of pneumonia, Mrs. Bull is ironically commemorated with a sundial in Ravenscourt park in my constituency.

Mr. Bull won his first election by only 19 votes. While he was an MP he became a senior partner of his law firm. That is an impressive sounding achievement, until one discovers that the firm was called Bull and Bull. He was a man ahead of his time as he was in favour of votes for women and the Channel tunnel, although these days I expect that the latter is more controversial than the former. Most bizarrely, my predecessor was ordered out of the House by Mr. Speaker’s predecessor for calling the then Prime Minister a traitor—which these days is perhaps more in tune with east London than west London politics.

In truth, the constituency of Hammersmith and Fulham is more famous for its elections than its MPs. I cite the East Fulham by-election of 1933, the battles of Barons Court of the 1960s and the Fulham by-election of 1986. All those have the common characteristic of being won by the Labour party. However, I believe that one of the most significant Hammersmith and Fulham election results was the one just a couple of weeks ago on 5 May. The recorded swing of almost 7.5 per cent. was one of the highest in the UK. The seat was the Conservatives’ No. 1 inner-city target, and a new 5,000 majority has been created. Together with the impressive results achieved in London by my hon. Friends the Members for Enfield, Southgate (Mr. Burrowes), for Wimbledon (Stephen Hammond), for Putney (Justine Greening), for Bexleyheath and Crayford (Mr. Evennett), for Croydon, Central (Mr. Pelling), for Hornchurch (James Brokenshire) and for Ilford, North (Mr. Scott), my result shows that we as a party are making great progress in London again.

The Labour party barely got started in the campaign. It was barely seen, barely heard and had little positive to say about its eight years in government. Meanwhile, the Lib Dems ran a candidate from Tunbridge Wells under the slogan, “Give Peace a Chance.” Perhaps they were more the surreal alternative.

Hammersmith and Fulham is one of the smallest constituencies in Britain, but it is none the less one of the most diverse. It is also one of the closest to Parliament. As my hon. Friend the Member for Welwyn Hatfield mentioned, it is quite possible to get back to Hammersmith and Fulham from the House at the end of each evening. In fact, I am probably one of the few Members with a direct door-to-door bus route from just outside Big Ben to just outside his house. That sounds fantastic, until one considers that given traffic in London, it can take up to two hours to complete the journey.

Prior to 5 May, some newspapers made great play of the fact that no premiership football ground was located in a Conservative seat. Some claimed that that showed that the Conservative party was not represented in the inner cities. All that has now changed, for I represent a constituency in which not just one, but two premiership clubs are located: Fulham and Chelsea. Notwithstanding the heroic events in Istanbul last night, I was delighted to see the streets of my constituency decked out in blue last Sunday to welcome their new champion. I refer of course to Chelsea football club, but “blue is the colour” is surely the future there politically as well, even if I say that as a Fulham fan.

Hammersmith and Fulham is also distinctive for having more tube users than any other borough in Britain and the greatest number of single women compared with single men in the United Kingdom. It is also the home of the Olympia exhibition centre and part of Earls Court. Its largest employer is the BBC, and it is the home of what is reputed to be Europe’s busiest road interchange at Hammersmith Broadway. It is also the London home to dozens of hon. Members, which can make canvassing in certain streets straightforward. Many hon. Members from both major parties have cut their teeth in local Hammersmith and Fulham politics.

The election in Hammersmith and Fulham was all about the dreaded congestion charge extension, the fact that eight out of nine muggers in my constituency go unpunished, the fact that a quarter of the borough’s secondary schools are on special measures, the appalling state of the District line and high council tax.

Perhaps the greatest concern, however, and why I wanted to speak in the debate, is the threat to the Charing Cross hospital. On the very day that the election was supposed to be called—a good day to bury bad news, one might say—on 4 April 2005, an announcement was made at a meeting with the chief executive of the NHS hospitals trust that the world famous Charing Cross hospital would either be demolished or possibly have its specialised services moved to the Hammersmith hospital on the Wormwood Scrubs site. That would be a crazy move, and it is one that I have been elected in part to prevent.

Charing Cross is a marvellous facility—the centrepiece of a three star-rated hospital trust. It is a global leader in cancer care, vascular surgery, neurosurgery, plastic surgery and much else. It is the trauma centre for the whole of west London and is ideally situated just off the A4 for any major incident at Heathrow. Most of all, it is also a local hospital, serving the needs not only of Hammersmith and Fulham, but of other parts of west London, and is easily accessible by tube, bus or car, which Hammersmith hospital is not.

The proposal suits nobody other than the management of the trust, who are in turn driven only by meeting Government targets, which have led to huge deficits in both the local primary care trust and the hospitals trust. In classic new Labour fashion, spin doctors were deployed to deny the initial press reports in The Observer that the Charing Cross site would be sold off. Interestingly, however, there was no denial of the plans to move all or most of the specialised services to the Hammersmith site. I expect that more will be heard on the topic in the House, and I look forward to winning the battle with the Government to leave Charing Cross services on their current site.

In conclusion, many people have asked me and others why the Conservatives did so well in Hammersmith and Fulham and elsewhere in London. The answer is that people in London are overtaxed and face declining public services. I predict major changes in the control of London boroughs in next May’s election.

I am delighted to become the first Conservative MP for Hammersmith since 1964 and the first-ever Conservative MP for the combined seat of Hammersmith and Fulham.

February 7, 2023
HISTORIC PRESS RELEASE : SRA Gauging Policy Agreed by Rail Industry [June 2005]
The press release issued by the Strategic Rail Authority on 24 June 2005.

The Strategic Rail Authority (SRA) has today published its final Gauging Policy, following a 3 month consultation. The Policy is designed to ensure that the industry makes the optimum use and deployment of its existing rolling stock and infrastructure. It offers benefits over the short, medium and long term – for both passengers and freight customers.

The Policy is the result of twelve months cross-industry collaboration and summarises the key findings of the cross-industry study group and their proposals. The Policy does not require substantial additional investment; instead most improvements can be realised through greater certainty and planning.

The key components that it is anticipated that the Policy will deliver are:
- Detailed maps, supported by descriptive databases defining where both freight and passenger vehicles are cleared to run;
- Much-simplified gauging approvals procedures (little formality should be required where a vehicle’s gauge is compatible with that stated for the infrastructure);
- A reduced number of standardised passenger vehicle gauges, in most cases larger than those in use today and optimised for defined types of operations and classes of route, each able to operate over an extensive portion of the network;
- A defined ‘core network’ for gauge-sensitive freight traffic;
- A wider range of standard and more easily comprehensible freight vehicle gauges to best suit the markets’ requirements and reap maximum benefit from the available gauge opportunities;
- A target structure gauge configuration defined on a route-by-route basis, taking account of both passenger and freight needs; and
- Optimised track position, to be achieved over time by routine maintenance with new and renewed structures being built to the defined gauge.
The Policy works towards creating a more holistic approach to investment in the industry by looking at the value for money to be obtained from addressing pinch points in the infrastructure rather than designing and procuring new fleets of trains.

SRA Chairman, David Quarmby, said:

“This Gauging Policy shows there is still great untapped potential within Britain’s existing railway network. It provides a framework to improve the fit between track and trains and facilitate improved services for both passengers and freight customers. I look forward to the Policy being taken forward energetically under the aegis of the Rail Safety and Standards Board, with the full support of the industry behind them.”

Andrew McNaughton, Chair, joint industry Vehicle-Structures System Interface Committee, said:

“This is a significant step forward in defining the railway that freight and passenger operators seek, to ensure the UK rail network develops to meet the needs of the coming years. It has been constructed by leading representatives of the whole railway industry working together co-operatively to balance commercial aspirations for growth with the physical realities of our Victorian heritage. The work of defining precise train and network sizes can now move forward quickly.”
January 4, 2023
HISTORIC PRESS RELEASE : Final Plan to Improve Western Rail Services published [June 2005]
The press release issued by the Strategic Rail Authority on 24 June 2005.

The final Great Western Main Line Route Utilisation Strategy was published today by the Strategic Rail Authority (SRA). Its aims are to reduce overcrowding and improve service patterns for passengers by making better use of existing tracks and trains on the route, to drive improved punctuality and reliability.

The Strategy, which covers the Thames Valley, the Cotswolds, South Wales and the West Country for the period up to 2012, is capable of delivering:
- Over 800 more seats for peak-time Thames Valley commuters into London Paddington station – another 4% capacity increase over and above that introduced in December 2004;
- Improved local and regional services across the wider Bristol, Cardiff and South West areas, including additional peak seating capacity, more regular pattern timetables and greater cross-Bristol journey opportunities;
- Additional high-speed, high-capacity rolling stock should be allocated to Paddington services, ensuring that all Main Line trains are operated with 125mph-capable stock.
Many of the changes could be introduced with the start of the new Greater Western rail franchise in April 2006. The proposals build on the improvements already introduced in December 2004 through the ‘wider benefits’ timetable, agreed between the SRA and First Group as a result of the new First Great Western Link (Thames Trains) franchise.

Jim Steer, Managing Director for Strategic Planning at the SRA, said:

“Today’s Utilisation Strategy has the potential to deliver marked improvements in performance and level of service. The Greater Western franchise specification, issued to bidders earlier this month, builds on the RUS and has the common objective of making best possible use of available capacity and matching services to demand.”

In order to deliver the Strategy’s benefits there will need to be a small reduction in the overall number of trains between Bristol and Penzance (eliminating duplication and introducing a more even-interval timetable).

Following stakeholder feedback there have been important changes from the consultation version of the RUS, issued in January 2005: This includes the fact that Greenford Line services will no longer be reduced in favour of additional services to Slough.
January 4, 2023
HISTORIC PRESS RELEASE : First Community Rail Routes Launched [July 2005]
The press release issued by the Strategic Rail Authority on 6 July 2005.

Plans to help secure the future of Britain’s local rail routes have reached a major milestone with the designation of the country’s first official Community Rail routes.

Forming part of the Strategic Rail Authority’s Community Rail Development (CRD) strategy, the designation of the three routes – The Esk Valley Line (Middlesbrough to Whitby), St Ives Bay Line (St Ives to St Erth) and Abbey Line (Watford to St Albans) – ensures that the lines are managed to meet local requirements at an affordable price. It also provides increased powers to local partnerships, bringing together stakeholders in support of their lines.

In addition to the designations, four new Community Rail Partnerships (CRPs) have also recently been created, increasing the number of CRPs nationally to 60. These partnerships can cover designated Community Rail Routes or local services on conventional lines.

Launched by the SRA last year, the Community Rail Development Strategy aims to put the country’s branch lines on a long term footing through a combination of increased passenger numbers, cost control and improved marketing via greater community involvement.

The programme also gives local people a greater say in the running of their railway via the establishment of Community Rail Partnerships – a partnership consisting of local authorities, the train operating companies and rail infrastructure owner and operator Network Rail.

With over 50 local lines identified for designation as Community Rail routes, the scheme has already started via six pilot schemes, with three of those now officially designated (see above), following a consultation period.

In practical terms, this means:
- On St Ives – many of the initiatives are already in place for this Summer, including a more frequent, regular interval service, increased station capacity and a simplified fares structure, which were facilitated by the CRD strategy and the proposed designation of the line.
- On St Albans – a new Community Rail Partnership has now been formed, and designation will play a key step in plans to provide a crossing loop and increase service frequency.
- On Esk Valley – designation is expected to facilitate the provision of better links with the North York Moors Railway and work is underway on assessment of the market potential for further development of the line.
Commented Chris Austin, the SRA’s Executive Director of Community Rail Development: “This is a tremendous start to the programme, with each of these three routes already seeing increased support from the communities they serve and in some cases, the introduction of new services focused directly on catering for local needs.”

A further four rail routes have also seen the establishment of new Community Rail Partnerships, each working towards the enhancement of these lines – North Staffordshire, Skegness to Grantham, the Isle of Wight and the Abbey Line – while work is in hand to establish a partnership on the Barton Line (Cleethorpes to Barton on Humber) in North East Lincolnshire and one for West Wales.

“Where the initial concept of Community Rail has already been embraced via existing partnerships, the results have been extremely encouraging, such as on the Bittern line in Norfolk, which has seen passenger numbers increase by almost 200% during the last eight years. The further introduction of these new rail partnerships will help strengthen an already effective community driven network.” added Chris.

Now the focus is on the remaining pilot schemes, with the designation consultation process recently completed on Grantham – Skegness and started on the Penistone line (Huddersfield to Barnsley) and Tamar Valley/Looe Valley Lines in Cornwall.

The programme will then turn to the remaining routes identified as suitable for Community Rail designation, with the overall development scheme scheduled for completion in two years.
January 4, 2023
HISTORIC PRESS RELEASE : SRA Publishes Final Annual Report [July 2005]
The press release issued by the Strategic Rail Authority on 21 July 2005.

The period covered (April ’04 – March ’05) saw passenger journeys top one billion, with a return to pre-Hatfield punctuality levels on key sections of the network.

SRA Chairman David Quarmby said: “This has been a year of steady and sustained performance improvement through the efforts of Network Rail and the Train Operating Companies, supported by the SRA. The railway carried more passengers than at any time since 1961, with passenger satisfaction levels at their highest and a dramatic fall in the number of passenger complaints. Freight traffic has continued its growth, now nearly 60% up on the low point of the mid 90’s.

“As confidence returns to the railway, there can be greater focus on the key longer term issues – getting unit costs down and addressing the huge prospective growth in passenger and freight demand.”

The SRA has continued to fulfill all its main functions during the year, while planning its transfer to the Department for Transport and other bodies.

Recent achievements by the Strategic Rail Authority, delivered in partnership with the rail industry include:
- Acceleration and cost reduction of the £7 billion West Coast Main Line upgrade. 125mph tilt train operation started last September.
- Delivery of the £2.5 billion upgrade of the Southern England commuter network which is on schedule to remove all Mark 1 slam door stock from the network and deliver 2,025 new vehicles by November 2005 (power supply upgrade work required to run the new trains is now complete).
- Continued reform of the franchise regime with the start up of the Greater Anglia (One), Scottish, Northern and East Coast franchises, and initiation of franchise competitions for Integrated Kent, Greater Western and Thameslink/Great Northern.
- Sustained the innovative planning of the railway with draft route utilisation strategies for Brighton Main Line, Greater Western, and West Midlands and consultation, on and detailed development of, draft regional planning assessments for the North East, North West and East of England.
David Quarmby added: “Over its five year life, the SRA provided essential leadership during periods of industry crisis. It has made a major contribution towards getting the railway where it is now and has helped lay the foundations for its future development and successful operation.

“We extend our hopes and good wishes to all those in the successor organisations – including many transferring from the SRA – as they take forward the challenging agenda for Britain’s railways.”

Since its establishment in February 2001, the SRA has, through a series of innovative policies and strategies:
- Reformed and stabilised the passenger franchising regime, aligning the franchise model to one which better matches the structures and strengths of the typical train company and its ability to manage risk, and worked closely with the Train Operating Companies on performance management to deliver customers’ expectations.
- Established a systematic and inclusive approach to long term railway planning, including the urgent task of achieving better capacity utilisation from today’s railway on a network and route basis, using this to inform the planning and specification of services as well as indicating priorities for network investment, through Regional Planning Assessments and Route Utilisation Strategies.
- Set out through its Strategic Plans the vision and the pathways for the development of the railway for passenger and freight, using as key building blocks strategies which have been developed, consulted and published on a wide range of topics such as Fares Policy, Freight Interchanges, Community Rail, Accessibility, Rolling Stock and Gauging.
- Introduced a much needed process of sponsorship and challenge for rail enhancement projects generally and led development of an industry strategy on ERTMS (the European Rail Traffic Management System).
January 4, 2023
HISTORIC PRESS RELEASE : West Midlands Rail Plan Finalised [July 2005]
The press release issued by the Strategic Rail Authority on 21 July 2005.

A confirmed ‘Route Utilisation Strategy’ (RUS) to make better use of existing trains and track capacity in the West Midlands, and improve punctuality and reliability, was published by the Strategic Rail Authority (SRA) today.

It contains measures to improve service patterns for passengers and to tackle growing local and regional demand. It comes after three months of formal consultation with Centro (the West Midlands Passenger Transport Executive), Network Rail and key local stakeholders. The Strategy, configured to accommodate passenger growth up to 2011 would deliver:
- Better use of rolling stock, especially in the peak;
- Longer peak time trains, where they are affordable and deliver value for money;
- Extension of off-peak services from Birmingham to provide a higher frequency to Kidderminster, Stratford-upon-Avon and Rugeley Trent Valley;
- Changes on the Shrewsbury-Wolverhampton-Birmingham corridor to improve performance, including possibly in the future, the operation of a peak time Shrewsbury-London service.
Principal changes from the consultation version, issued on 28 February include:
- Train services at Stone station to continue, with calls in the Birmingham-Manchester services to replace the withdrawn local service;
- Wolverhampton-Walsall local service retained until April 2006 then replaced by a fast coach service;
- Revised and detailed forecasts of where and when peak passenger trains are likely to require lengthening and confirmation that demand for rail services continues to grow apace.
The RUS covers a geographic area centred on the West Midlands conurbation including the lines to: Shrewsbury; Hereford; Worcester; Redditch; Stratford-upon-Avon; Leamington Spa; Coventry; Nuneaton; Burton-on-Trent; Lichfield; and Stoke-on-Trent.

It indicates that route capacity in the region is likely to be sufficient to meet expected rail freight growth in the West Midlands up to 2011, except for Water Orton to Birmingham where Network Rail are developing a scheme to provide more capacity. The RUS will act as a guide for Network Rail’s major renewal of signaling over the next decade, directing provision of track capacity to where it is needed.

In order to deliver the Strategy’s benefits there would have to be associated reductions on lightly used routes on, or crossing busy main lines, such as the local services between Stoke-on-Trent and Stafford, Stafford and Nuneaton and Walsall and Wolverhampton.

Richard Davies, SRA Acting Managing Director, Strategic Planning, said:

“The West Coast Main Line upgrade is already delivering significant benefits for the West Midlands. The new strategy aims to further maximise the railway’s potential to passengers and freight customers. This RUS will put the railway in the West Midlands on a sustainable footing into the next decade.”
January 4, 2023
HISTORIC PRESS RELEASE : Chancellor orders asset freezing against terror funders [January 2005]

The press release issued by HM Treasury on 26 January 2005.

Chancellor Gordon Brown today instructed the Bank of England, as agent for Her Majesty’s Treasury, to direct financial institutions that any funds which they hold for or on behalf of Sulayman DARWISH must be frozen immediately.

The action has been taken because HM Treasury has reasonable grounds for suspecting that Sulayman DARWISH meets the test under the Al Qa’ida and the Taliban (United Nations Measures) Order 2002 and the Terrorism (United Nations Measures) Order 2001.

January 4, 2023
HISTORIC PRESS RELEASE : Chancellor leads consultation on ten-year strategy for childcare [January 2005]

The press release issued by HM Treasury on 5 January 2005.

In visits to the Gabalfa Primary School in Cardiff and the Pinehurst & Penhill Sure Start Centre in Swindon, the Chancellor of the Exchequer Gordon Brown today met parents, children and childcare providers as part of the Government’s consultation on its 10-year strategy for childcare.

Visiting the Gabalfa Primary School with Wales First Minister Rhodri Morgan, the Chancellor also discussed the launch of the Child Trust Fund with parents. This month will see the first Child Trust Fund vouchers sent to parents and a consultation on extra payments at age seven into every child’s account.

Speaking at the Pinehurst & Penhill Sure Start Centre Gordon Brown said:

“Nowhere is the scale of our ambition for a Britain of aspiration and achievement – and for a Government on people’s side – more evident than in the demand for real choices for parents in childcare and children’s services and in moving from the old era of centralisation to parents locally making the decisions.

“Fifty years ago Government help for the youngest consisted of little more than maternity services, child vaccination and then school attendance at five, failing to acknowledge what we all now know: that a young child’s life chances are shaped more by the care, support and early education they receive in the years before five than at any other time.

“Nobody better understands the problems faced by working parents than parents themselves. So we are the first government to launch a nationwide consultation to engage parents in planning the next stage of childcare and children’s services – providing parents not just with choice in provision but a voice in the design of that provision.

“The new frontier for children’s services is about insisting that no child is left out and there is no cap on their potential or limit to their ambitions. I want the Child Trust Fund to ensure that at 18 every child will have some wealth from which to plan their adult future, demonstrating our determination that in tomorrow’s Britain every young person, free from poverty, has the best chance to make the most of their talents.”

January 4, 2023
HISTORIC PRESS RELEASE : John Healey promotes enterprise and skills in Yorkshire and Humber [January 2005]
The press release issued by HM Treasury on 17 January 2005.

Enterprise and high skilled jobs are now the key to long-term prosperity in Britain, the Economic Secretary to the Treasury – John Healey MP – has outlined today in a visit to the Yorkshire and Humber region. He has pointed to the Government’s commitment to take tough decisions to achieve American levels of business creation and ensure that, at every level, Britain has the best-educated and most flexible workforce in the world.

In discussions with the Regional Development Agency, Yorkshire Forward, and the Yorkshire and Humber Learning and Skills Council he also promoted the importance of modern manufacturing industry for both regional growth and the UK economy as a whole.

While there are 300,000 more businesses in the UK than in 1997, if the UK had a business start up rate equivalent to the US 1.8 million more businesses would be in place. And if Yorkshire and Humber had a start up rate equivalent to the most enterprising areas in the UK, it would have extra 15,550 businesses.

John Healey visited staff and pupils taking part in the ‘Enterprise in Action’ project at the Archbishop of York Church of England School in York this morning. This afternoon he visited Sidhall and Hilton Products Ltd in Brighouse which currently has 10 staff undertaking a level 2 qualification in Performing Manufacturing Operations as a part of the Government’s Employer Training Pilot.

The Minister also held discussions with both Yorkshire Forward, the Regional Development Agency, and the Yorkshire and Humber Learning and Skills Councils where he discussed the importance of small business start up, building an enterprise culture, and securing workforce development. He pointed to the recent Pre-Budget Report, which included:
- the publication of Philip Hampton’s interim report on rationalising inspection and enforcement regimes;
- new rules guiding the implementation of European Union regulations;
- significant reductions in compliance burdens for small businesses through the integration of HM Customs & Excise and the Inland Revenue;
- measures to improve support for small businesses by challenging the Regional Development Agencies to use their new devolved powers to go beyond the one-size-fits-all business advice of the past and provide focused, tailored mentoring and support for small firms;
- accepting in full the Graham Review recommendations to increase the effectiveness of the Small Firms Loan Guarantee scheme, deregulating Business Angel investors in small firms, and making tax changes to facilitate university spin-outs;
- roll out by 2007-08 of the National Employer Training Programme, which was piloted in both South and West Yorkshire; and
- the establishment of the Leitch Review looking at long-term skills requirements.
The visit – one in a series to regions around the country – is a chance for those involved with skills and enterprise in the Yorkshire and Humber region to contribute their views to preparations for this year’s Budget.

John Healey said:

“In any successful modern economy the presence of leading-edge, high-growth businesses is vital. To promote growth and economic sustainability we must invest in long-term drivers; to raise skills levels, encourage innovation and invest in technology. That is why the Government is determined to rise to the challenge of securing an enterprise culture and skilled workforce to ensure American levels of business start up.”
January 4, 2023
HISTORIC PRESS RELEASE : John Healey promotes enterprise and skills in Northamptonshire [January 2005]
The press release issued by HM Treasury on 19 January 2005.

Enterprise and high skilled jobs are the key to long-term prosperity in Britain, the Economic Secretary to the Treasury – John Healey MP – has outlined today in a visit to Northamptonshire. He has pointed to the Government’s commitment to take tough decisions to achieve American levels of business creation and ensure that, at every level, Britain has the best-educated and most flexible workforce in the world.

There are 300,000 more businesses in the UK than in 1997 but if the UK had a business start up rate equivalent to the US, 1.8 million more businesses would be in place. And if the East Midlands had a start up rate equivalent to the most enterprising areas in the UK, it would have extra 15,500 businesses.

To encourage and listen to regional views on Government policy plans in advance of this year’s Budget, Mr. Healey today visited Catalyst Corby, an urban regeneration company, local businesses at Northants Chamber of Commerce, and agencies including the Regional Development Agency and Learning and Skills Council. He also pointed to the recent Pre-Budget Report, which included:
- The publication of Philip Hampton’s interim report on rationalising inspection and enforcement regimes;
- New rules guiding the implementation of European Union regulations;
- Significant reductions in compliance burdens for small businesses through the integration of HM Customs & Excise and the Inland Revenue;
- Measures to improve support for small businesses by challenging the Regional Development Agencies to use their new devolved powers to go beyond the one-size-fits-all business advice of the past and provide focused, tailored mentoring and support for small firms;
- Accepting in full the Graham Review recommendations to increase the effectiveness of the Small Firms Loan Guarantee scheme, deregulating Business Angel investors in small firms, and making tax changes to facilitate university spin-outs;
- Roll out by 2007-08 of the National Employer Training Programme following successful pilots in the East Midlands area; and
- the establishment of the Leitch Review looking at long-term skills requirements.
The visit – one in a series to regions around the country – is a chance for those involved with skills and enterprise in Northamptonshire to contribute their views to preparations for this year’s Budget.

John Healey said:

“In any successful modern economy the presence of start up firms and high-growth businesses is vital. If we are to maintain the hard won growth and stability in the UK economy, we must raise skills levels, encourage innovation and invest more in technology. This is why the Government is determined to rise to the challenge of securing an enterprise culture and skilled workforce that can provide US levels of business start up.”
January 4, 2023