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Tag: 2016

  • Matt Hancock – 2016 Speech on Cyber First Programme

    Matt Hancock
    Matt Hancock

    Below is the text of the speech made by Matt Hancock, the Minister for the Cabinet Office and Paymaster General, at the Institute of Directors in London on 3 March 2016.

    It’s incredibly fitting that we’re meeting today in this wonderful building, with its rich history. Until 1978 this was home to the United Service Club for senior military personnel – who 75 years ago were defending our homes, businesses and way of life against foreign aggressors.

    I’m told Ian Fleming was a regular here while he served, and I can’t help but think of a line from the new cyber-savvy Q in Skyfall:

    I can do more damage on my laptop sitting in my pyjamas before my first cup of Earl Grey than you can do in a year in the field.

    I’m glad to see you all made it out of your pyjamas this morning. But Q had a point. It’s not just soldiers, sailors, airmen, and policemen we need to protect our assets and livelihoods today. Today a line of code can ruin lives just as any bomb or bullet.

    In a digital, interconnected world, we need the involvement of everyone in society to keep that society safe – particularly the leaders of the business world.

    Much of our critical national infrastructure is in your hands, critical infrastructure like our energy and water supplies, our transport system and our phones.

    And it goes beyond that, increasingly to our e-mail and social media correspondence, even our credit card details and online accounts.

    With the advent of smart products and intelligent environments, this smart world already includes my watch, and one day soon perhaps my fridge or my car.

    If the predictions are true and 200 billion smart devices exist in the world in 2020, we are going to rely hugely on the private sector to keep us safe in cyberspace.

    In protecting this infrastructure the interests of government and business align. We are all invested in the success of the digital economy and we all have a shared responsibility to keep it secure.

    It’s the duty of government to keep people safe. We will play our part, but in the war against cybercrime, you’re the Home Guard.

    Recognition

    That job boils down to 3 imperatives: recognition, response, and reward. We need to recognise the scale of the challenge. We need to respond to it. And we need to reap the rewards of the digital revolution.

    We’re moving away from the 20th century all-encompassing state to a smart government you can hold in the palm of your hand.

    We’re uploading the state, and have one of the most digitally advanced governments in the world.

    That enables us to provide targeted and bespoke services driven by real people, not Whitehall diktat. That opportunity can’t be ignored.

    But as we move more services and operations online the range of potential targets increases. Our mission to deliver better services for citizens is entirely dependent on our ability to protect our networks, users and data.

    And so is yours. If people don’t think the information you’re storing online is safe, that’s a business risk. They expect you to get it right.

    Financial loss can be measured and insured against, but the trust your customers and suppliers place in you cannot.

    As one of the most advanced digital economies in the world, with 12.5% of our economy now online, we’re in a unique position to benefit from digital. But that makes us uniquely vulnerable to cyber attack too.

    Ninety percent of large businesses and 74% of SMEs reported a breach in the past year. The average cost for a severe breach is nearly £1.5 million at a minimum for big firms. For SMEs it’s over £300,000.

    Last summer GCHQ responded to twice as many incidents against networks of national significance as in the same period the year before – and the figure is rising rapidly.

    The volume and sophistication of attacks is increasing, as is the range of perpetrators.

    Response

    So let us first recognise the challenge. Next let us co-ordinate our response.

    The report the Institute of Directors is publishing today shows that your members increasingly appreciate the seriousness of the threat, but that too many are under-prepared for dealing with it. That leaves you open to attack.

    This matters to me. So we’re going to invest £1.9 billion over the next 5 years in cyber security.

    We’re going to make the UK one of the safest places to do business online, scaling up disruption activity, making us a tougher, more resilient target and making us better able to protect our interests in cyberspace.

    The report you’re launching today underlines the growing importance of sharing information between government and industry.

    In future that will only become more imperative. That’s why we’re going to establish a new National Cyber Centre – a single point of contact for business, and a unified platform that provides all the support, advice and intelligence industry needs.

    Through it we will bring together responsibilities from across government, build new capabilities and share more information with industry, so we can handle major incidents in real-time, around the clock.

    The National Cyber Centre will cover critical national infrastructure, as well as wider business, and will reach into the world of secret intelligence as part of government.

    But the scale of this challenge is too great to be tackled by any one organisation. It’s a fight we can only win if business, academia, law enforcement and government stand shoulder-to-shoulder, working together both in this country and internationally.

    We must create a world-class cyber security ecosystem where innovation thrives, businesses get the investment they need, and our shared expertise evolves as quickly as the threats we face.

    That’s why we’re setting up a £165 million cyber and defence fund to invest in the next generation of cyber-security companies.

    We’re working with startups through our Early Stage Accelerator programme, and we’re establishing a cyber security innovation centre in Cheltenham.

    We’ve also launched our third annual cyber governance health check, providing companies with confidential tailored reports allowing them to address their weaknesses.

    Fifty-eight percent of FTSE 350 firms now use our ‘10 Steps to Cyber Security’ guidance, and we’ve published tailored guidance and free e-learning for SMEs. I recommend you use it.

    If we’re hard-nosed in recognising the challenge and the opportunity and respond as swiftly as we can, we have a better chance than anyone of surviving and thriving in the new digital world.

    Reward

    So, third, the rewards on offer are extremely valuable. In government it means we can use digital to redesign how the state operates and empower citizens to take control of their services.

    For the private sector too, cyber security offers huge opportunities. The industry was worth £17.6 billion to the UK in 2014, employing 100,000 people – up 40% in a year.

    We’re in the top 5 exporters in the world, with the global export market worth £28 billion and growing by 20% each year.

    All of us – industry, academia and government alike, need to step up to the skills challenge in order to address this growing market.

    That’s why I can announce today that we’re significantly expanding our Cyber First programme.

    Currently, 20 talented undergraduates are sponsored through university and then guaranteed 3 years of public or private sector cyber security work. We’re going to boost this to 1,000 students by the end of 2020.

    I want to do everything we can to make sure the next time this country produces an Alan Turing, an Ada Lovelace or a Tim Berners-Lee, we give them the tools and opportunities they need to change the world, as we’ve done so many times in the past.

    And it’s good business sense for you too to take on more apprentices and to nurture the best talent. It puts you in a position to capitalise on the rewards offered by the cyber industry, and it helps us as a country close the gap between where we are and where we need to be.

    Conclusion

    So let’s work together to recognise the challenges we face, respond energetically to them, and make sure we have the capability to reap the rewards of the cyber revolution.

    The challenges have changed since 1903, when the Institute of Directors was set up. That was the same year as the first transatlantic radio broadcast – a 54-word greeting from President Theodore Roosevelt to King Edward VII that ushered in a new era of global wireless communications.

    But the principles are the same. Members of this organisation have witnessed several technological revolutions and successfully steered this country’s industry through them.

    Today the internet presents the most radical step forward in humanity’s collective capability the world has ever seen.

    It is already a vast opportunity. And so too a new threat. Let us rise to the challenge together and seize the rewards for humanity that this great innovation offers.

  • Andrew Jones – 2016 Speech on Managing Transport

    andrewjones

    Below is the text of the speech made by Andrew Jones, the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Transport, at the Chartered Institution of Highways and Transportation conference, on 2 March 2016.

    Opening remarks

    Good afternoon everyone.

    It’s an absolute pleasure to be here.

    To be part of a distinguished speaker line-up.

    And to round off this excellent conference.

    You’ve covered a huge amount of ground in considerable detail today.

    And I think what the discussion has shown is that transport needs to be at the heart of planning.

    So what I’d like to do in this final speech is give you the government perspective.

    And what we’re doing to deliver better transport in an uncertain world.

    An uncertain world

    You know – I’m sure if we polled any generation of adults over the past 50 years, they’d probably say life was becoming less predictable and secure.

    But what about us the 21st century generation?

    Undoubtedly, we have faced some exceptional challenges.

    From the rise of global terrorism to the financial crash of 2008 both of which have changed the way we look at the world.

    Paradoxically, rapidly evolving technologies like smart phones and social media may help us control our own lives.

    But they also have the potential to change society in ways we cannot foresee.

    Even the government of which I am a member was born out of uncertainty.

    Coming to office in 2010, during a period of unprecedented economic upheaval.

    As part of the first Coalition in this country since World War Two.

    Not knowing precisely how the day to day machinery of government would work.

    But despite all these challenges and uncertainties, we are also living through incredibly exciting times.

    What one person may describe as ‘uncertainty’, I would call ‘opportunity’.

    Particularly for those of us working in transport.

    Opportunity to embrace a new age of technological change and innovation.

    Opportunity to make transport a real force for good.

    And opportunity to mould our future.

    Six years of progress

    In fact we were able to achieve a great deal during 5 years of coalition government.

    We turned round our economy.

    And began delivering within our means.

    We also built a consensus for infrastructure investment.

    According to a Treasury report last year, Britain’s future infrastructure programme is now valued at £411 billion.

    By some margin, transport is the biggest part of that programme.

    And it’s in this Parliament when we really get cracking with delivery.

    We recognise that the stop-start funding of the past created uncertainty within the industry.

    So what we’re providing is a sustained pipeline of transport investment that will create jobs, boost productivity, and make the country more economically secure in the future.

    This is one of the things we can control.

    Wholehearted government commitment.

    Predictable and fully committed funding.

    So we’re all better placed to take advantage of the opportunities around us.

    Our ultimate goal a transport network that supports growth and helps reduce carbon emissions, changing the way we work and travel, is not just a priority.

    It’s an essential.

    Today we’re at the start of a construction and modernisation programme which will make Britain one of the leading transport investors in the western world.

    We start building HS2 next year, for example.

    Elsewhere on the railway, there’s Crossrail, Thameslink, Northern Hub, new intercity trains, and a major electrification programme.

    This Parliament, we’ve raised funding for transport by 50%.

    And we’re rolling out a £15 billion roads investment strategy up to 2020 – the biggest spend on roads since the 1970s, with over 100 major schemes around the country.

    We’re already making real progress with that strategy.

    Four major schemes are complete and open to traffic.

    Five more majors are under construction.

    Smart motorways are reducing congestion, and improving journey times by smoothing traffic flow.

    In fact, during this Parliament, Highways England will add over 400 lane miles.

    And the long-term goal is to link existing stretches to create a new smart motorway corridor between Leeds, Manchester, Birmingham and London.

    The future today

    But what about future technology change?

    There’s little doubt that we are on the verge of a road transport revolution.

    After 120 years of dominance, there’s an end in sight for the internal combustion engine.

    While sales of ultra low emission vehicles are really starting to motor.

    And a huge array of other technologies promise equally profound changes to the way we drive and manage traffic.

    New fuels.

    New ways to fill potholes.

    New ideas to improve road safety.

    In February we announced £20 million to support 8 projects to help vehicles communicate with roadside infrastructure.

    These projects including new ‘talking car technologies’ are the first to be funded from the government’s £100 million Intelligent Mobility Fund.

    The projects range from autonomous shuttles and pods to vehicles carrying visually-impaired passengers using advanced sensors and control systems.

    Trials to test driverless cars on the streets are being carried out in several locations around the country.

    And autonomous vehicles are also being used in Heathrow to move passengers before real world tests start in Greenwich this summer.

    The benefits are clear.

    Easier travel.

    Fewer accidents.

    Lower carbon emissions and pollution.

    And reduced congestion.

    Roads, bridges and tunnels are also starting to join the ‘Internet of Things’.

    Indeed, wireless connection between vehicles and the wider environment is already helping warn drivers about hazards, weather and traffic patterns.

    Strings of sensors monitor traffic by communicating with mobile phones in moving vehicles.

    The information is sent to a traffic control system which automatically adjusts traffic flow.

    One of the most interesting areas of development is cars that talk to each other.

    We already have the technology.

    The systems we use today to bring music and entertainment and GPS information into our vehicles will help us build a smart vehicle network.

    If a car ahead hits congestion, it will immediately alert other cars so they can take another route.

    Or connected systems could reserve you a parking space at your destination as soon as you get into your car.

    No more driving around town centres on a fruitless search.

    Technology will also change local highway maintenance.

    Helping highway authorities reduce costs.

    A simple example is collision sensors which prevent bumps and scrapes while drivers are parking their cars.

    Another is autonomous braking.

    And this year the University of Leeds, working with Leeds City Council, started a project to create self-repairing cities.

    The idea is to use small robots to identify problems with utility pipes, street lights and roads, and fix them with minimal disruption to the public.

    New systems are also being used to monitor the condition of roads and other infrastructure, to improve maintenance and reduce whole life costs.

    Of course we can’t say with certainty today exactly how all these technologies will evolve, and which of these systems will prove the most successful.

    We don’t know precisely how we will navigate the path from fossil fuel-powered cars driven by humans, to low carbon, driverless motoring.

    But we do know we will get there.

    And that there will be many fantastic opportunities for industry along the way.

    Resilience and certainty

    That journey starts right now.

    We are already working closely with Highways England, the Office for Rail and Road, and the new watchdog Transport Focus to define the process for our next Road investment strategy after 2020.

    It won’t just make use of innovative technologies.

    It will also be funded in a new way.

    As the Chancellor announced last year, we are launching a National Roads Fund, using vehicle excise duty to pay for the upkeep of roads.

    Every penny raised through VED will be used to improve the network.

    Delivering the long-term certainty the industry asked for.

    I was pleased that the CIHT and the rest of the industry welcomed the announcement.

    For example, the Civil Engineering Contractors’ Association said it was:

    Extremely good news for our sector, because it goes a long way to ensure a secure future for the maintenance and upgrade of the English strategic roads network.

    Long-term funding reform is key to delivering the infrastructure that is fit for the 21st century.

    I couldn’t agree more.

    We’re working with the industry to support resilience in other ways too.

    Helping achieve 30,000 road and rail apprenticeships.

    Attracting and training thousands of engineers, designers and construction professionals.

    And expanding the supply chain.

    To deliver the roads programme the country so badly needs.

    These are all massive challenges.

    For you and for me.

    But by working in partnership, we can turn uncertainties about the future into certainties.

    Providing long-term, ring-fenced investment.

    Managing a more efficient road network.

    And putting Britain at the forefront of technological innovation.

    The opportunities could not be more exciting.

    So let’s grasp them together.

    Thank you.

  • Jeremy Corbyn – 2016 Speech at British Chambers of Commerce Conference

    jeremycorbyn

    Below is the text of the speech made by Jeremy Corbyn, the Leader of the Opposition, at the British Chambers of Commerce Conference on 3 March 2016.

    Decision Time: New Politics, New Economy, New Britain?

    I’d like to thank John Longworth, your director general, for that introduction, and Dr Adam Marshall, who is chairing the conference.

    It’s an honour to be asked to speak to you especially on the subject of a ‘New Politics, New Economy, New Britain’.

    Because those are almost exactly the three main pillars of the platform I was elected to lead the Labour party on, I’m sure that’s just a coincidence.

    But those three pillars are the foundations of everything we do.

    The first is about a new kind of politics: that aims to democratise our public life from the ground up, giving people a real say in their communities and workplaces breaking open the closed circle of Westminster and Whitehall.

    The second pillar is for a new economics: one that puts investment, productivity and sustainable growth first, instead of a self-defeating austerity aimed at shrinking the state for an economy fit for the 21st century that works for everyone, where prosperity is shared.

    Our third pillar is about a new relationship with the rest of the world: one based on trade, co-operation, human rights and conflict resolution, where war is a last resort.

    Today I want to set out today how that agenda can work for you and the tens of thousands of businesses you represent across the country.

    To shape that new economy we need to work together. It is only through effective co-operation between government and business, state and markets, public and private, education and enterprise. That we can build an economy for the future that delivers for all.

    It’s that spirit of cooperation that drives the work of local chambers of commerce across the country.

    St Helen’s chamber, for example, helps to train young entrepreneurs, equipping them with skills through the St Helen’s business school, and helping to make sure local business and enterprises have the information and workforce they need to grow and prosper.

    Many accredited chambers of commerce across the UK are working to bridge the gap between work and education.

    And I hope to be visiting more of your local chambers, including in Greater Manchester and the North East, in the months to come.

    Our shadow chancellor, John McDonnell, has started to lay out the framework of a new economics.

    As John has said many times, an economy that allows people to flourish and prosper in the 21st century will be a very different kind of economy from that of the 1990s, let alone the economy of the 1940s or 1960s.

    What’s clear is that this government is not creating the economy of the future we need. Six years ago George Osborne said austerity would wipe out the deficit and cut the debt.

    That didn’t happen. Instead, recovery only got going once the chancellor took the brakes off and pumped up housing credit to get through the general election.

    Osborne’s recovery is a house built on sand. But what Labour now stands for is far more than stopping the damage being done by this government.

    We want to see a break with the failed economic orthodoxy that has gripped policy makers for a generation.

    The idea that speculative finance would deliver for all that manufacturing could be run down and our strategic assets sold off that the 1980s catechism of deregulation, privatisation and low taxes on the well-off would produce balanced, high investment and productivity growth has been shown to be for the birds.

    That model of how to run an economy is broken crashed and burned in 2008 and not just in Britain.

    The results have been a lop-sided economy the rapid growth of insecure, low-paid jobs, sluggish private investment declining productivity and stagnating or falling incomes for the majority.

    Labour’s alternative will put investment first. We will only borrow to invest over the business cycle.

    We will put public investment in science, technology and the green industries of the future front and center stage.

    Only by driving up investment will we achieve the higher productivity we need to guarantee rising living standards for all.

    We want to see the reindustrialisation of Britain for the digital age driven by a national investment bank as a motor of economic modernization based on investment in infrastructure, transport, housing and technology. That provides a solid return.

    I want to change the way our party makes policy.

    When politicians and advisers sit round a table and devise policy, they rarely succeed in getting to grips with the real problems our country faces.

    We need to involve more people in decision-making and consult far more widely outside politics.

    I believe it’s essential to listen:

    To the growing army of the self-employed, often struggling to make ends meet, and falling through the cracks in our social security system;

    – to entrepreneurs seeking to innovate and create wealth;

    – to business people shaping a more dynamic, responsive economy.

    Only by engaging can we develop a comprehensive plan to forge a new economy and the kind of Britain we want to see.

    That is why John McDonnell is touring the country with a range of speakers discussing what the economy should look like in 2020, and why he and our shadow business secretary Angela Eagle are drawing on the ideas of advisers such as the Nobel Prize winner Joseph Stiglitz to help shape our policies for the future.

    We want to see a genuinely mixed economy of public and social enterprise along with long-term private business commitment that will provide the decent pay, jobs, housing, schools, health and social care of the future.

    An economy based on a new settlement with the corporate sector that, yes, involves both rights and responsibilities.

    Labour will always seek to distribute the rewards of growth more fairly. But, to deliver that growth demands real change in the way the economy is run.

    Change that puts the interests of the public, the workforce and the wider economy ahead of short-term shareholder interest.

    Only an economy that is run for wealth creators – the technicians, entrepreneurs, designers, shopfloor workers, and the self-employed – and puts in them in the driving seat… is going to deliver prosperity for all.

    Wealth creation is a collective process between workers, public investment and services, and creative individuals and businesses.

    It cannot be based on a race to the bottom in pay and job insecurity, or the subsidy of low wages with in-work benefits. That’s why we’re in favour of a real living wage and stronger trade unions.

    That will not only benefit employees, but help prevent good employers being undercut. As the evidence shows, collective bargaining boosts productivity as well as protecting workers.

    George Osborne and Sajid Javid think the solution to the problems businesses and workers face is to cut back government.

    But it wasn’t government that was the problem in 2008, when the banking sector drove the economy to the point of collapse.

    The political consensus at that time was to opt for ‘light touch regulation’ of finance – and sit back and collect the tax revenues.

    But you cannot base a decent social policy on an unsustainable economic policy.

    And we cannot outsource economic policy to the City of London. That has not served our economy well, and it has not served business well.

    The way that banks in Britain have treated small and medium-sized enterprises in particular has been a textbook failure.

    The banking sector has to be reformed. Finance must support the economy and not be an extractive industry that treats consumers, entrepreneurs and businesses as cash cows.

    We need a new ecology of finance. That means encouraging credit unions and small business support.

    We need a national investment bank at the heart of economic policy to target investment on key public and economic priorities, not just for quick returns.

    And we need to reform the major banks so that they serve the wider economy, not just themselves. That includes; using the public stakes in banks such as RBS to drive lending and investment and rebuild supply chains.

    For some politicians, the state is only a burden, to be reduced or removed.

    But we see a crucial role for the strategic state to create the conditions for people and businesses to thrive and deliver prosperity that is stable and shared.

    Look at some of the problems facing Britain today:

    The NHS is in crisis – there are record deficits in NHS trusts, and they come from two key mistakes by government.

    First, there is the legacy of PFI debt – an inefficient way of delivering necessary investment.

    The last Labour government lacked the confidence to make the argument to borrow to invest, and so it did what banks thought they could get away with before the crash, an off-the-books accountancy wheeze.

    In both cases, putting debt off the books did not work it came right back onto the books and helped trigger crisis.

    Secondly, we have not trained enough nurses and doctors – and the problem is becoming more acute.

    It means the NHS is spending £4 billion on agency staff to fill gaps.

    It also means we are reliant on importing nurses and doctors from abroad.

    The Government argues migration must be reduced, but then fails to fund training leaving us reliant on migrant labour to fill skills gaps.

    But the education and skills training gap goes far wider.

    Across the country, this is the one issue local business people most often raise with me.

    Yet this government has cut college funding and slashed the adult education budget.

    On the one hand; there are university graduates unable to find a graduate-level job. While large numbers of unemployed workers are unable to acquire the skills they need to work.

    And on the other; businesses in all regions are struggling to recruit workers with the right skills.

    As the BCC’s own Businesses and Education survey found 88 per cent of businesses think school leavers are unprepared for the workplace.

    That’s why I have been campaigning for lifelong learning; for a national education service to support workers throughout their lives in re-training and re-skilling.

    We will be consulting with the education sector and employers about how we can renew skills throughout our lives.

    And I want you to participate in that process.

    Apprenticeships have a crucial role to play and we must do more invest in vocational education and training.

    But some apprenticeships are clearly too low quality and look rather more like attempts to avoid paying the minimum wage;

    Secondly, the Government’s apprenticeship levy, hasn’t been properly thought through. The policy risks being simply, an additional tax on businesses, so that the Government can meet its arbitrary target.

    Apprenticeships should be about quality training for employees, to acquire the skills they need to help businesses grow and become more productive.

    Then there is the problem of infrastructure. Think about the creaking, underfunded infrastructure our country relies on.

    In a recent survey the CBI found that two-thirds of businesses are concerned about the slow pace of infrastructure delivery.

    The Centre for Economics and Business ranks the UK thirteenth on the value of its infrastructure, behind every other G7 country bar Canada.

    Enterprise and innovation cannot flourish when our roads and railways, ports and airports are lagging behind our competitors.

    But infrastructure means the digital economy as well.

    Our digital and communications market, as Ofcom recognised last week, is simply not working.

    Chile, Estonia and Iceland all have a higher percentage of premises connected to fibre-optic broadband.

    Businesses simply cannot expand, particularly in rural areas, without improvements to our digital economy.

    The evidence is clear that only the public sector and public investment can guarantee the super-fast broadband network in every part of Britain the essential low-cost connections people and businesses need in a 21st century economy.

    As it is, government foot-dragging and ideological dithering is holding digital Britain back.

    Finally, we lag alarmingly behind the rest of Europe on renewable energy.

    The transition to a carbon-free economy is essential because of the climate crisis but it’s also a massive opportunity for investment and growth.

    Yet Britain sits on the sidelines with some of the lowest production and use of renewables in the G7.

    It requires a strategic government to lead.

    If the state retreats and shirks its responsibility to provide the conditions for growth, rebalancing the economy will remain a pipedream.

    The Chancellor has already slashed public investment in infrastructure by over £20bn in real terms since the last year of the Labour government.

    And it is scheduled to fall by nearly £5bn more by 2018-19.

    Borrowing to invest in infrastructure makes economic sense.

    It helps businesses to grow and, as the OECD argues, will pay for itself.

    And as the OECD recommends, Labour will commit to spending at least 3.5 per cent of our GDP in infrastructure investment while the Tories will spend less than half that.

    We should be laying the foundations for a modern economy now.

    That applies not only within states but between states too; climate change, the refugee crisis, raising standards for workers and consumers and dealing with the minority of companies that seek to avoid their taxes

    These are all issues that can only be resolved by working with our partners in Europe, not ditching them.

    This is why we are campaigning to remain in the EU because we believe, like 60 per cent of businesses the BCC surveyed, that the EU is the best framework for trade and cooperation in the 21st century.

    But our failure to invest and our determination to sell off assets have left us with a current account balance that is forecast to be the worst of all the G7 countries this year.

    Britain should not be selling off our nation’s assets to pay our way in the world. You can’t survive for long paying the rent by flogging the furniture.

    Britain needs to be exporting high-tech, innovative products to the world not standing by and watching our exports stagnate or shrink.

    We cannot be satisfied that our growth is currently driven by low-interest rates, record low oil prices, property and debt. Those factors cannot be sustained indefinitely.

    All these economic problems are connected. Lack of access to finance constrains export growth. A failure to invest in our digital economy stifles productivity growth. A dearth of skills holds back innovation.

    In the twenty-first century the role of Government is to understand these connections and make policy to fit.

    You may not like everything we say or do. But when it comes to the big decisions on the economy, infrastructure, skills and investment, we are natural allies. Labour is committed to what is needed for business to expand and succeed.

    We expect business to put more back into the economy but we will do more to give the economy a stronger future.

    And if we’re going to shape a New Britain, it can only be done through cooperation; between public and private, state and market, government and entrepreneurs and workforce and employers.

    It is that spirit and practice of cooperation, which drives the great work of local chambers of commerce throughout Britain.

    Thank you.

  • Alan Johnson – 2016 Speech at Airbus on the European Union

    alanjohnson

    Below is the text of the speech made by Alan Johnson on 22 February 2016.

    It’s great to be here in Airbus to see the work you’re doing and to talk about our country’s future. Aerospace is a huge wealth creator for the UK worth around 28 billion pounds a year and supporting 109, 000 highly skilled jobs.

    I was the aerospace minister twelve year ago when I learnt a great deal about the importance of countries working together to deliver substantial manufacturing projects. Indeed the original Airbus mission statement described its purpose as “strengthening European co-operation in the field of aviation technology and thereby promoting economic and technological progress in Europe.” You are fulfilling that noble objective magnificently, not just in producing planes but in your work on helicopters and indeed through the European Space Agency which I understand you’ve put ten people into space.

    This is a historic week in British politics and it sets us up for the biggest political decision of my lifetime.

    Bigger, I think, than the European referendum of 1975.

    Now that the theatrics of the Brussels late-night deals, bi-lateral meetings and the constitutional necessity of us to fall out with the French are over, it’s worth considering the scale and size of the decision that faces the British public this June.

    I believe this is a more important decision even that a General Election and much wider too than the package that the Prime Minister has negotiated. The referendum will be on one question – do we remain or do we leave the European Union? Bremain or Brexit to use the shorthand.

    There is so much at stake for each British family. Their future prosperity, security and well-being will be at the core of the debate over the coming months. But in addition Britain’s place in the world will be on that ballot paper.

    Forty one years ago, when the last referendum was held, I was a twenty five year old postman living on a council estate and trying to assess what would be best for my young family.

    I voted ‘yes’ as a statement of the kind of country I wanted Britain to be, outward facing, trading with the world and open to new opportunities but mainly I was thinking of my children’s future.

    I’ve never regretted that decision. The leave side say that Britain is a successful economy, the fifth biggest in the world and that is of course true. But strangely enough they never equate our success with membership of the EU even though they claim that it has disproportionate influence over our country.

    This referendum matters, because ultimately, this is both a personal decision taken in each home and it’s a national decision embracing that wider debate about what kind of country we want to be.

    Put bluntly, the question which faces us is what’s best for me and what’s best for my country?

    Remarkably, though the world has changed dramatically since 1975, the arguments for staying in Europe, ring just as true as they did then. The Yes leaflet that I had to deliver through every door on my round said that being in Europe:

    “offers the best framework for success, the best protection for our standard of living, the best foundation for greater prosperity. If we left, we would not go back to the world as it was, still less to the old days of Britain’s imperial heyday. And the changes that have made things more difficult and more dangerous for this country.”

    Those words are just as relevant today except that in 1975 there were only 9 member states, now there are 28. Countries are much more interdependent and in 1975 we didn’t face the rise of militant Islam, the huge global population shifts or the realisation that climate change threatens the very existence of our planet.

    Labour’s starting point, in this referendum is jobs and work.

    We’re here today in Airbus, one of Europe’s great manufacturers.

    An employer that provides jobs and skills to young people, pays good wages, manufactures high quality products, and spends around 2.1 billion with more than 1,000 suppliers in the UK.

    For industries like Airbus to survive and thrive, they need collaboration across the European market. You are more aware than anybody of the need to move freely between Britain and the continent, you do it on a regular basis without visas and in the same way that well over a million Brits are able to live and work in other EU states. manufacturers need access to the single market so that they have more customers to sell to.

    That single market, now consists of 550 Million consumers and is the largest commercial market in the world, bigger than the US, bigger than China.

    It’s an amazing achievement of European vision and political skill to have built an economic block which started as a steel and coal agreement between France and Germany and has blossomed into the world’s largest trading area.

    And Britain has always been a pioneer in opening up that market, because we are a trading and exporting nation and this great European market buys half of Britain’s exports. Eight out of ten of our top export markets are in the EU.

    That’s why our manufacturing sector needs Britain to be playing a leading role in the European Union.

    Just yesterday the Engineering Employers federation announced that 82 per cent of their members see no sense in the UK cutting itself off from its major market.

    For British companies, British GDP and British exports, a decision to leave the European Union would be hugely damaging. It really would be a leap in the dark, at a time when countries should be working more closely together. Britain alone could be walking off into splendid isolation.

    All that trade, all those exports, keep people in work. They translate into jobs that rely on a Britain playing its part in Europe.

    Two thirds of British jobs in manufacturing are dependent on demand from Europe.

    That’s two thirds of our manufacturing base reliant on that single market access and Britain’s membership of the EU.

    That’s over one and half million manufacturing jobs here in Britain. If we’re serious about gradually re-focusing our economy more towards making things, upon which there is cross party consensus we need to remain in Europe. Turning specifically to apprentices in the manufacturing sector, and I’m pleased to see some of you here today, around 50,000 apprentices depend on trade linked to our EU membership.

    That’s 50 000 manufacturing apprenticeships dependent on our EU membership that leaving the EU could put at risk.

    For each one of those apprentices, gaining skills, earning a good wage and working towards a career, this referendum will be crucial. We can’t let them down by turning our back on the world and cutting British manufacturing and industry off from their largest export market.

    As well as jobs, Europe provides rights and protections in work places across the EU.

    I know you’re a Unite workplace and I look forward to campaigning with your union in the Remain campaign.

    When Labour took office in 1997, we opted into something called the Social Chapter, which gave working people decent basic minimum standards, like rights to four weeks paid leave, rights for part-time workers to get the same hourly rate as full-time agency workers to be treated fairly, paid maternity and paternity leave, anti-discrimination laws, and protections when companies change ownership.

    There are those who want Britain to leave Europe because they want to destroy those rights. They deride them as “red tape”. They have the fundamentally unpatriotic ambition of turning Britain into an off shore, anything goes, race to the bottom kind of country where workers have few rights and little protection.

    That’s why in this campaign, we’ll continue the proud Labour tradition of campaigning for Britain in Europe, because it’s good for British jobs and good for the men and women who work in those jobs.

    But what about the alternative, what would a Britain outside the European Union look like?

    · A Britain attempting to negotiate its way back into the single market which we helped to create. Spending time and treasure frantically trying to get back to the position we’re in now;

    · A Britain still subject to every law that governs that market but without any say;

    · A Britain still subject to free movement requirements, if we follow the route Norway and Switzerland;

    · A Britain still paying into the EU budget with no say over how it is spent;

    · A Britain scrabbling around trying to patch together deals to tackle cross border crime and terrorism.

    In 1975 the ‘No’ brigade argued that Britain would be a province in a European super state. Forty years on that claim can be seen as completely inaccurate. The Prime Minister’s deal in Brussels must surely have killed off that major argument of the Eurosceptics. The reality is we are stronger, more prosperous and safer as part of the EU.

    Furthermore we’ve seen our values of democracy, free speech and the rule of law applied to European countries that had known nothing but dictatorships military rule in the south and totalitarian regimes in the East.

    Our global allies see us as stronger and more powerful inside the European Union. From our nearest neighbours in Ireland, to the USA, to the countries of the Commonwealth, the international community is loud, vocal and clear, they want Britain to stay in the EU. Because it’s better for Britain, because it’s better for Europe and because it’s better for the World.

    Now that David Cameron’s deal has been done, the fundamentals are as clear and as compelling as ever.

    British manufacturing needs a Britain that is in Europe and millions of British jobs rely on Britain’s EU membership.

    That’s why today I can announce that the Labour Party has registered with the Electoral Commission to campaign in this referendum.

    We are the first political party to do so and we will be the only significant national party to be making our case to the country.

    For peace and prosperity, jobs and growth, protection for workers and action on climate change.

    For the security of our nation and Britain’s influence in the world.

    Today we focused on the case for apprenticeships and jobs for young people. Tomorrow we go to Northern Ireland to stress the importance of the EU to the peace process and to our relationship with the Republic of Ireland.

    There is no progressive case for Britain to isolate itself. Of course the EU isn’t perfect; there is no such thing as a perfect institution.

    We need to be leading in Europe, not leaving. We need co-operation on our continent not conflict.

    Airbus is a magnificent symbol of Europe working together and it’s been a huge pleasure to be with you today.

  • Angela Eagle – 2016 Speech to London Stock Exchange Group

    angeleeagle

    Below is the text of the speech made by Angela Eagle, the Shadow First Secretary of State and Shadow Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, on 22 February 2016.

    It’s a great pleasure to be here, and thanks to the London Stock Exchange Group for putting on this important event.

    It provides an opportunity to celebrate the success of the 1000 small and medium sized enterprises contained in the report, and more widely to congratulate entrepreneurs right across the country who risk everything in the pursuit of innovation and prosperity.

    I offer my congratulations not because the pursuit of growth is an end in itself – but because it means a more productive economy, a wealthier country and the security of work for people in my constituency and throughout the UK.

    And on that note – I have to declare a slight bias here as a Merseyside Member of Parliament – I am thrilled that 10 companies from my local area have been highlighted in this report.

    The success achieved by small and medium sized enterprises should give Britain great cause for optimism for the future. No economy stands still and the more dynamic we can be, the greater our chances of ensuring prosperity for our citizens in the future.

    Since taking on this role, my focus has been on reaching out to the business community, with the aim of understanding your needs and the work that policy-makers and those who aspire to be in Government can do to help create the conditions to enable you to succeed.

    So I applaud the work you are doing and successes you’ve achieved. But in the decades to come Britain’s future success is not inevitable or guaranteed.

    As entrepreneurs know better than most that we have to earn our way in this rapidly changing and highly competitive world.

    I remain concerned that the government has been asleep at the wheel; leaving our domestic economy insufficiently resilient to advancing global threats, and not in a high-enough state of readiness to seize on the fast-approaching opportunities to make sure that Britain benefits from good growth.

    A number of the threats facing our economy are global in nature, they’ve been advancing for some time and we in the Opposition have warned about the danger signs before.

    There have been some worrying signs of slowdowns in China, volatility in stock markets across the world and oil prices have plummeted. And Eight years after the global financial meltdown we have yet to see a return to normalcy across the world economy.

    Rather than washing his hands by excusing these threats as global phenomena – of which he’ll say there is little he can do to influence – the Chancellor should acknowledge that under his watch domestic structural weaknesses in the UK economy have been allowed to persist. They are now in danger of holding Britain back.

    We have a productivity crisis – the gap between our productivity and that of the other G7 nations is at its widest since 1991, and the output per hour from UK workers fell further in 2014 to 19 percentage points below the average of other leading industrialised nations.

    Businesses also face a skills emergency – the number of posts left unfilled has increased by 130% since 2011, and in some industries more than a third of vacancies are caused by skills shortages.

    I am clear that Government should be pulling all possible levers to assist the growth of small and medium sized enterprises.

    And that is why Labour supports the government’s plans to establish a Small Business Commissioner in the Enterprise Bill currently before Parliament, but their lack of ambition means that it falls to the Opposition to press for it be more than just a toothless complaints service. Labour will fight to make it more independent and authoritative so it can tackle the problem of late payments and misuse of market power by large companies.

    Businesses are also being failed by the Government who are going in the wrong direction when it comes to meeting their promises on deregulation – they talk a good game on deregulation but the reality is quite different.

    Having promised to “cut a further £10billion of red tape over the next Parliament…” research shows that since May the net cost to business from regulation is increasing.

    This of course will not be news to you. Small and medium sized businesses routinely report that the heaviest regulatory burden they face is tax administration, and the government are set to saddle small businesses with more work by insisting that they file tax returns quarterly – in contrast Ministers met with Google some 25 times in advance of their negotiated sweetheart tax deal.

    In the starkest of terms this just shows that it’s one rule for those who reach cosy private deals across the table from Ministers, and quite another for those small businesses and the self-employed who must now file their returns every three months.

    Britain cannot afford to be complacent about our future prosperity, and it’s vital that the government take steps now to heighten our state of readiness to seize the opportunities for change which arise.

    I’m optimistic for the future, not least because the world is now on the cusp of the fourth industrial revolution. I want us to take advantage of what will be an age of rapidly advancing digitalisation, an age of robotics and big data which is expected to transform our daily lives beyond recognition.

    This age will confront us with profound questions about how to generate and share prosperity more effectively, how to ensure that the proceeds of growth are not hoarded by a lucky few but distributed throughout our society. Our goal should be to generate wealth but ensure that the proceeds of it are shared in a more socially and environmentally sustainable way.

    And as the first industrial nation we need to react to this challenge if we are to mould it to our advantage.

    Choices the government make now will ultimately determine whether we thrive in the coming fourth industrial age.

    And when it comes to choices, this year we face perhaps the most important economic choice of my lifetime, with the EU referendum called for 23rd June.

    In the short time between now and then, we have to take a fundamental and searching look at ourselves and realise that this decision is really a proxy for a long needed debate about our place in the world. And we need to be confident about our ability to fight d project our progressive democratic values in an increasingly volatile and authoritarian world.

    We know that our continuing membership of the European Union brings jobs, growth and investment.

    We are a proud trading nation with almost half of our exports going to EU countries – worth £227 billion last year to the UK economy.

    From finance to manufacturing, companies establish themselves in Britain in the knowledge that they will have access to the European single market of 28 countries and half a billion potential customers.

    And our EU membership brings considerable benefits to many of the small and medium sized businesses here today.

    Figures reveal that nearly 110,000 small and medium sized businesses exported goods to the EU in 2014 and that’s even before you take into account our world-leading service sector – that is something which Brexit would put at risk.

    I will be playing my part and I hope you will too. This isn’t just about the looming leadership election in the Conservative Party though you might be forgiven for thinking it is given the weekend press coverage. It’s about the future direction our country will take. With the Conservative Party machine sitting it out, we in the Labour Party will be crucial to winning a vote to remain in the EU and we will rise to this challenge.

    Because our national identity is strengthened not diminished and our capacity to shape our future prosperity is enhanced not compromised by our EU membership.

    Nothing will destabilise our economic prosperity and Britain’s place at the heart of the global economy more than a vote for isolationism and turning our back on the world which Brexit would signal. But we are living in volatile, unpredictable times, and we must not take the result for granted.

    The decision we take at the ballot box in the months ahead will chart our economic fortunes for generations to come.

    So I and my party will be doing everything we can to keep Britain in over the months ahead. And so should you.

    You have a persuasive voice and an important case to make. As world-leading British businesses you have a voice. Make sure you use it.

    To lay the solid foundations for our future prosperity and to prosper globally, we must embrace this spirit of openness through our society and economy, and the technological change and the opportunities it brings. We can only do this with a sense of optimism and confidence which a vote to remain will signal.

    Thank you for listening.

  • Jeremy Corbyn – 2016 Speech to the Welsh Labour Conference

    jeremycorbyn

    Below is the text of the speech made by Jeremy Corbyn, the Leader of the Opposition, in Llandudno on Saturday 20 February 2016.

    It is a pleasure to be back in Llandudno in a Labour Wales where our party has been making a difference for the past 17 years.

    Let me run through just some of what you’ve achieved what Labour in Wales has achieved:

    A health service free from unnecessary top-down reorganisations and privatisation where your hospitals are not struggling with record deficits due to the legacy of PFI

    You in Wales funded investment on the books and this is delivering.

    The Tories are desperate to run down the NHS in Wales. But the record tells a different story.

    · The NHS in Wales is treating more people than ever before and 90% say they received good treatment

    · Free prescriptions for all

    · A new treatment fund being setup for life threatening illnesses

    · On cancer waiting times, Wales is doing better than England and cancer survival rates in Wales are improving faster than anywhere in Britain

    · You’ve protected the social care budget which has been slashed in England putting an increased burden on the NHS in England terrible for the people affected, and a false economy too.

    · And in Wales, you didn’t pick a fight with hard-working dedicated junior doctors there are good industrial relations in Wales no strikes provoked and no operations cancelled unnecessarily

    We strongly support the doctors who don’t want patient safety to be put at risk.

    Last week I had the privilege of spending a couple of hours with a group of junior doctors.

    Let’s be clear, they are not “junior” they are dedicated, highly qualified people on whom we all depend.

    They are alarmed at the direction the NHS is taking.

    As a parting gift they gave me this book “How to dismantle the NHS in 10 easy steps” which starts with an internal market and ends with an aim of introducing universal private health insurance.

    Quite bluntly our NHS is ours to keep forever.

    Labour cares and it invests in care.

    As Nye Bevan said: “Illness is a misfortune, the cost of which should be shared by the community”.

    The Welsh Labour and in particular the Welsh Minister Mark Drayford.

    In Wales you have built an education system that has just delivered the best ever GCSE results where new schools are being built where primary school pupils get a free breakfast where the poorest college students still get the education maintenance allowance (EMA) that was so cruelly scrapped by the Tories.

    And where Welsh students aren’t shackled by mountainous debt and where grants are being maintained.

    It is shocking that English students leave university with an average £22,000 more in debt than Welsh students that is a shocking burden that shackles young people as they start in life. It is no surprise that home ownership has collapsed

    Then there’s Jobs Growth Wales which has helped 15,000 young people into work and the Young Entrepreneurs Bursary that has helped young people to setup over 400 businesses in Wales and your plans to deliver 100,000 quality apprenticeships.

    We have invested in young people – in their education and their skills – and by doing so we are investing in our future.

    I visit colleges and universities all over Britain and I have to say I was really impressed with the Bay Campus at Swansea and the support given by the Welsh government to this development and it is already reaping the benefits of high tech jobs in the area.

    The Tories are not investing in young people but cutting their opportunities weighing them down with debt limiting their life chances we all know this is not fair Labour in Wales proves there is an alternative.

    There is so much that the UK Labour Party can learn from Labour in Wales and we will.

    I want to pay tribute to First Minister Carwyn Jones thank you for all you have achieved for Welsh Labour and the people of Wales and thank you too to all our Labour Assembly Members.

    You do a great job.

    I also want to pay tribute to Nia Griffith our shadow secretary of state for Wales her input at shadow cabinet and in the House of Commons means the voice of Welsh Labour is heard and respected in Westminster.

    In an age in which politics is treated with cynicism what an inspiring record of hope and achievement Labour in Wales has delivered.

    And you’re delivering despite the fact the Tories have cut your budget by more than £1 billion.

    But perhaps your greatest achievement won’t bear fruit until this summer your football team in international competition for the first time since 1958

    And, speaking as an Arsenal fan, watching the magnificent Aaron Ramsey in your red shirt will mean I have split loyalties this year.

    All eyes will be on Europe this summer not just for football, but for political reasons too.

    The EU referendum is now likely to take place in June and Labour will be campaigning for Britain to stay in.

    You in Wales know the benefits of our EU membership it has helped deliver jobs, growth and investment here in Wales as much as any part of the UK.

    It is due to the role Labour has played in Europe that we have delivered rights at work rights to minimum paid leave rights for agency workers paid maternity and paternity leave equal pay and anti-discrimination laws and protection for the workforce when companies change ownership.

    And it was Labour – our excellent MEPs in partnership with trade unions that made sure Cameron’s attempt to diminish workers’ rights was kept off his EU negotiations agenda.

    We will be running the Labour In for Britain campaign because our case for being in Europe is about delivering a better Britain for workers and consumers.

    “Despite the fanfare, the deal that David Cameron has made in Brussels on Britain’s relationship with the EU is a sideshow, and the changes he has negotiated are largely irrelevant to the problems most British people face and the decision we must now make.

    His priorities in these negotiations have been to appease his opponents in the Conservative party.

    He has done nothing to promote secure jobs, protect our steel industry, or stop the spread of low pay and the undercutting of wages in Britain.

    Labour’s priorities for reform in the EU would be different, and David Cameron’s deal is a missed opportunity to make the real changes we need.

    We will be campaigning to keep Britain in Europe in the coming referendum, regardless of David Cameron’s tinkering, because it brings investment, jobs and protection for British workers and consumers.

    Labour believes the EU is a vital framework for European trade and cooperation in the 21st century, and that a vote to remain in Europe is in the best interests of our people.”

    We want progressive change in Europe to make the EU work for working people.

    That includes the strengthening of workers’ rights. Putting jobs and sustainable growth at the heart of EU economic policy. Democratisation and greater accountability of EU institutions and a halt to the pressure to privatise public services.

    Cameron’s deal will do nothing to address those issues.

    His “emergency brake” on migrants’ in-work benefits is largely irrelevant too. There is no evidence that it will act as a brake on inward migration.

    And taking benefits off low paid migrants won’t put a penny in the pockets of workers in Britain or stop the undercutting of UK wages through the exploitation of migrant workers.

    The issue the Tories do not address is the low wages and the way employers systematically undercut industry wide agreements.

    We will be standing up to the xenophobia of UKIP attacking Europe or demonising immigrants doesn’t increase anyone’s pay, it doesn’t build a single home, it doesn’t treat a single patient, provide a single child with a free school breakfast.

    Theirs is a vision of despair a mantra of hate and fear and Labour will never pander to it.

    The NHS in Wales and the NHS in England both know the value of those thousands of migrant nurses and doctors dedicated to our NHS and anyone who has been treated by any of our magnificent NHS staff knows that commitment.

    But while Labour in Wales is working together with people to improve lives the actions of the Tory government in Westminster act against that at every turn.

    The Institute for Fiscal Studies says that tax and benefit changes in the last five years have left the average Welsh household £560 a year worse off. When the Tories get in power that is what they do. Tax cuts for the few, the super-rich and big business public service cuts and welfare cuts for the many.

    We have gratuitous inequality in this country the average pay of the top chief executives compared with the average worker has risen from 47 times in 1998

    to 183 times last year.

    For too many people in the UK who aren’t the super-rich elite and there are quite a few of them, life is wracked by insecurity, at work and at home, and the Tories are making it worse.

    Labour believes that we only succeed if we all succeed together.

    The impact of this insecurity on people’s lives can be huge, it affects people’s physical and mental health.

    I want to pay tribute to Luciana Berger, the shadow minister for mental health, who has campaigned relentlessly to ensure the rhetoric of ‘parity of esteem’ is matched by reality.

    The Tories have no plan for the economy, no strategy for industry and no wish to make the economy work for everyone.

    They stood by as the steel industry got into trouble as jobs were lost and communities suffered like in Port Talbot.

    Across Europe, other countries took action the Tories stood by and let jobs go.

    We have met with our European counterparts on this and I raised it with the Chinese President action is possible if you care.

    The Tories have failed to invest in modernising the economy, we are way behind other countries on our digital infrastructure, our transport, our energy system and our housing.

    Just this week, the OECD has downgraded its UK growth forecasts and told George Osborne it’s time to stop the austerity and invest in our country’s future.

    This confirms what our shadow chancellor John McDonnell and I have been saying since September, the Tories’ austerity is political choice not an economic necessity their cuts are both brutal and unnecessary

    In 2010 they said that their ‘long-term economic’ plan would sort all this out that the deficit would be eradicated by now.

    Their long-term plan has turned far longer than they imagined but subject to short-term revision when it fails again and again. It is a blueprint in deepest Tory blue to shrink the state, to shrink people’s security, stability and opportunity.

    Low pay and job insecurity are holding people back meaning too many families are struggling to make ends meet every month to pay the rent or the mortgage.

    A good job and a good home should be a source of security. For too many people their job and their home are a source not of security but of anxiety.

    Six million workers now paid less than the living wage in low pay Tory Britain.

    And what is the Tory response to this crisis? To weaken trade unions, the most effective way in which people stand up for better pay.

    And instead of backing the real living wage they’re bringing in a phoney living wage, lower of course and young workers are locked out from even this modest increase.

    There is a housing crisis. Under David Cameron, home ownership is down, rents are up, evictions are up, and homelessness is up.

    And what is the Tory response? The lowest rate of housebuilding since the 1920s. And to force councils to sell off council housing at a time when it has never been more vital. I know Labour in Wales is consulting in whether to scrap the right to buy because we need more not fewer council homes.

    When Labour’s Teresa Pearce put an amendment to the Housing Bill to ensure that homes for rent must be fit for human habitation the Tories voted against it

    And they don’t believe that the private rented sector needs to be regulated.

    Whether it’s the crisis of low pay or the housing crisis it is Labour offering solutions. Labour councils making a real difference in communities and a Labour government making a difference in Wales.

    It was a great Labour politician that described what Labour does.

    We build security, we build the institutions of fairness and we build them “In Place of Fear”.

    We are the party of social justice and of environmental justice.

    When it comes to rip-off energy bills it is Labour councils that are setting up energy companies – like Robin Hood Energy in Nottingham – to get a better deal for residents and to tackle climate change.

    We can reduce bills for people and we can tackle climate change. There is no contradiction.

    That is why 70 Labour councils have committed to eliminate all carbon emissions by 2050 – including major cities like Edinburgh, Manchester, Newcastle, and Liverpool and here in Wales in Swansea, Torfaen and Caerphilly.

    And Labour in Wales has set out a clear energy policy, Energy Wales: A Low Carbon Transition and is supporting decentralised energy production through the Local Energy Service.

    What have the Tories done?

    They continue to fail to invest in renewable energy cut subsidies for the nascent solar industry, but increased them for fracking and for diesel generators.

    On low pay on housing on energy and the environment the Tories just stand by, Labour is standing up.

    The message for the elections this May is clear. Labour is the best protection for your community against the onslaught of Tory cuts.

    We must expose all the Tory failures: class sizes up hospital waiting lists up homelessness up evictions up queues at food banks up child poverty up while services like social care, on which communities rely, are cut.

    They have failed to rebuild and rebalance the economy they are hoping that rising household debt will keep the economy afloat. We know how that turned out last time.

    Having Labour on your side is the best protection for your community whether that’s a Labour mayor or a Labour council or a Labour government, like here in Wales.

    Communities are paying the price for this government cutting corners in public services funding as the winter floods show.

    If the Tories had continued our investment in flood defences had kept on the senior staff employed to make decisions in these emergencies and had protected the emergency services who responded to save lives and homes during those difficult days and weeks we would not have seen the level of destruction and flood damage that caused such anguish to so many people as their homes were damaged and their belongings ruined.

    Transport infrastructure is absolutely crucial to industrial development and growth. I praise the Welsh government in its support in re-opening and improving valley railway lines, the plans for the improved metro links in the south west of Wales and the crucial need to improve the North Wales line and road links.

    The most beautiful railway line I have ever travelled on is the mid wales and coastal route. Growing up in Shropshire, my heart sang when I reached Machylnneth.

    And I’m coming back to Wales many times, but I will be back soon to deliver the Kier Hardy memorial address in Aberdare.

    Labour offers a much-needed alternative to this false economy.

    We have already challenged them and won on many important issues:

    1. We forced them to take a U-turn on cuts to working tax credits meaning 3 million families will no longer be hit this April with a £1,000 cut to their family income

    2. We made them backtrack on plans to further cut police numbers in their Autumn statement

    3. And we stood against the horrendous proposal that the UK would run Saudi Arabia’s prison system for them

    Labour is standing up, not standing by.

    We let people down last May all the horrors that the Tories are inflicting now are because Labour didn’t win.

    Since then the membership of our party has doubled.

    I was elected Leader because people want a new kind of politics; honest, straight-talking, forward-thinking.

    Our party is one of social justice every child deserves a good education every student the option to study at college or university everyone deserves a decent and secure home to live in nobody should ever be left destitute the grotesque levels of inequality are unjustifiable and must go.

    We are living through an era of the most grotesque deepening inequality in Britain and the West.

    In the USA this debate is now at last dominating much of the politics of the primary campaign as we are ensuring it dominates politics in this country.

    The cynics say that inevitably the next generation will be worse of that this, I say this is not inevitable and not necessary as socialist our duty is to expand the wealth but crucially to share it so the next generation is better off than this one, and our grandchildren will be better off than our children.

    It is the collective that delivers for us all.

    We are united in our determination to take on the Tories and to fight for the better country that Labour can deliver as you have delivered in Wales.

    You have a great record here in Wales and a great plan to deliver a better future.

    Together, we will deliver it and continue delivering for the people of Wales.

    Dioch.

    Thank you.

  • Sajid Javid – 2016 Speech on Trade and Industry

    Below is the text of the speech made by Sajid Javid, the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, at the Mansion House in London on 2 March 2016.

    My Lord Mayor, ladies and gentlemen.

    First of all I think I have to congratulate the Lord Mayor on his grasp of Klingon! I have my own favourite Klingon proverb:

    …a leader is judged not by the length of his reign but by the decisions he makes.

    Lord Mayor, I know you have only one year in the job, but I’m sure you’ll make some great decisions!

    Let me begin by saying I’m delighted to reply to that toast, and by thanking you for the honour of inviting me to this important event in this beautiful, historic setting.

    King Alfred and Alexander the Great are indeed hard acts to follow. When Alexander was 32 years old he cried salt tears because there were no more worlds left to conquer.

    I’m 46 and I’ve won 2 elections in Bromsgrove. I feel I have some catching up to do.

    Now, the statues of the great and good here remind me of a speech I gave this time last year, at another historic venue. That was the Chapter House in Westminster Abbey.

    There’s a story that says the monks who used to run the building were deeply unhappy with the boisterous, rude politicians who used to work there.

    So after Parliament moved out, they got their revenge, by painting various MPs into a depiction of the damned at the last judgement.

    I’m a little worried that I’ll go back with my kids one day and they’ll spot a bald, brown guy in one of the paintings. If they do I’ll just say it’s Chuka Umunna!

    Chuka’s not here is he?!

    Mansion House regulars will have noticed that at this trade and industry dinner you don’t just have a new Lord Mayor – you also have a new Business Secretary. The first since 2010.

    I’d like to take a moment to pay tribute to my hardworking predecessor, Sir Vince Cable. The longest-serving holder of this post since Sir Peter Thorneycroft back in the 1950s. And, more importantly, a veteran of 5 trade and industry dinners. That must be a record. A very hard record to beat.

    I actually have a lot in common with my Liberal Democrat predecessor. I modelled my hairstyle on him, for example.

    But I also share his sincere belief that business is a force for good. One that deserves the complete support of government at every level.

    Of course, there are one or two differences in how we think that support should be offered. And you won’t be surprised to hear that!

    Perhaps the biggest difference is in our approach to industry. Sir Vince’s Industrial Strategy was well-regarded among those it benefited. But its impact was strictly limited, offering support for just 11 tightly defined sectors of the economy.

    That was great for the chosen few, who had all the resources of BIS standing behind them. But businesses outside the gilded circle took that to mean they didn’t matter to the government. That they were on their own.

    When I was Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, I frequently heard from members of our £80 billion creative industries that they didn’t feel valued. That they weren’t taken seriously, despite being global leaders in their field and employing millions of people. The same was true of our £100 billion tourism sector. And since taking up the reins at BIS I’ve heard similar complaints from across British business.

    So it’s time for a change. Which is my strategy for industry – and yes I do have one – is different.

    I’m not trying to pick winners. I’m working to create the conditions in which all British businesses can thrive.

    My approach can best be described as non-interventionist but highly engaged. It’s about building on previous success, with a much wider dialogue. About listening to businesses from all sectors, working with them to remove barriers to growth and productivity, and creating the conditions in which they can thrive.

    We’ll still be talking to and working with the main sector councils. They do great work and they know their areas better than anyone. But I’ve taken the old strategy’s closed shop and replaced it with an open door. A willingness to deal with representatives of all sectors and to respond positively to industry-led solutions.

    This shift in focus is particularly important given the arrival of what has been dubbed the ‘fourth industrial revolution’. Advances in technology are challenging the tyranny of conventional wisdom and blurring the lines between traditional sectors.

    The world’s biggest taxi company, Uber, doesn’t own a single taxi. The world’s biggest provider of accommodation, AirBNB, it doesn’t own a single hotel room. Or a multi-billion dollar media company, one of the largest in the world, Facebook, doesn’t create any original content.

    Which sector does a start-up fall into if it designs, makes and sells bespoke knitwear using the latest technology? Is it creative? Is it manufacturing? Is it retail? Is it digital?

    In a world where old labels are becoming increasingly meaningless, it makes no sense to build an industrial strategy around them. Business is changing and it’s only right that government’s way of interacting with it changes too.

    That’s why I’ll be taking this new approach to industry. And that approach is the first of my 6 priorities.

    Now, Friedman told us that in a free market, no exchange takes place unless both parties benefit. But lately it has often seemed that the opposite is true.

    We’ve seen established interests trying to stop disruptive rivals from entering the marketplace. We’ve seen car buyers that have been lied to about emissions levels. We’ve seen growing businesses stopped in their tracks by barriers as diverse as unfair energy bills and burdensome regulations.

    It’s not good for business, it’s not good for customers, and it’s not good for productivity. That’s why my second priority is to make markets work better – both for businesses and for consumers.

    In line with the new approach to industry, we’re doing this through determined deregulation and a hands-off approach. We’re maintaining standards without stifling innovation or attempting to tell people how to run their businesses. We’re looking at ways we can use increased competition to raise the UK’s game on productivity. And we want to empower consumers, making it easier to understand what deals they’re being offered and how they can get the best one for them.

    I want to see the Competition and Markets Authority and the economic regulators using their competition powers to maximum effect with the smallest possible burden on business. And that includes looking at specific markets to identify barriers to effective competition, and standing ready to act on the CMA’s flagship market investigations into banking and energy.

    There’s also a role for government in repairing market failures. It’s not the job of the state to step in and prop up unviable businesses. But when a need isn’t being served, when demand isn’t being met, a carefully planned intervention can make a difference.

    Five years ago Vince Cable stood here and he talked about plans for a Green Investment Bank. A world first, a unique vehicle to tackle risks associated with green infrastructure that the market was unable to adequately finance.

    Now 5 years on, the GIB has been an unparalleled success. It has delivered over £10 billion of finance for over 60 projects. And it is making a 10% projected return on its investments.

    But more than that, it has created a new market for such investments by showing that sustainable projects can deliver real returns. That environmentally friendly ideas can also be serious investment opportunities. That green really is the colour of money.

    Back in June I explained that the time had now come for the GIB to stand on its own 2 feet, that we would move it into private ownership. And tonight I can announce that the formal sale process will begin tomorrow morning. I can see there’s at least one eager buyer here. But you’re going to have to wait until the morning.

    We expect there to be significant interest in the market, as a range of financial institutions and pension funds seek to tap in to this successful asset class and green their own portfolios. And, as I said in the House of Commons last month, its unique green mission will be protected by the creation of a special share.

    Now many of the GIB’s investments have helped cutting-edge innovative projects and these ideas have helped reach the mainstream. As we’ve already heard this evening, innovation is something we should nurture and sustain. Because, as the Lord Mayor himself said in a speech here last November “innovation means prosperity”.

    And that’s why innovation is the third of my priorities. The UK has a long history as a hotbed of new ideas and new ways of thinking. We’ve all been taught how the incredible inventions of the late 18th and the early 19th centuries led to a golden age of British industry. And I firmly believe that we have the talent and potential to similarly dominate in the 21st century. But only if the government helps create a climate in which innovation can flourish.

    We must have more intelligent regulation. We must improve access to finance. And, above all, we must help to develop the technology and skills businesses will need to compete in the 21st century market of ideas.

    Building on the success of the plans to boost productivity and improve competition, I’m leading work on a government-wide innovation plan.

    It will help ensure that the money invested by all departments in all forms of innovation is spent in an effective, joined-up manner. It will also help to focus Whitehall minds on the need for innovation within government. Every year we spend £250 billion on procurement – and innovation shouldn’t just be something for the private sector.

    This government’s commitment to supporting innovation was made clear by the Spending Review, which protected our annual £4.7 billion spend on science and research. Funding that will be used to create everything from lifesaving medicines to world-changing inventions. And we’re making it easier for the private sector to innovate, with Research and Development tax credits, the Patent Box and Entrepreneurs’ Relief.

    Of course, all the good ideas in the world won’t lead to economic success if we don’t have the skilled workforce that is needed to take them from drawing board to factory floor. And that’s why my fourth theme, building skills for the future, is so important.

    The global marketplace is changing, and the British workplace is changing with it. The challenges we face today are very different to those that we faced just a generation ago, as are the skills required to compete. We neither can nor should attempt to compete with low-skill, low-wage emerging economies in a race to the bottom.

    Instead, in order to deliver the high-wage, low-welfare economy we are aiming for, we must ensure that British workers have the training they need in order to take on the skilled jobs of the 21st century. There is excellent work going on in schools, in colleges and in universities to see that the next generation is properly equipped. And our commitment to deliver 3 million apprenticeships is already delivering real results.

    However, the vast majority of people who will be working in Britain in the next 25 years are not in full-time education. They are already out there in the workplace. And the idea of a skill for life, of learning a trade, of never needing further training, is a thing of the past.

    Fortunately, the new technology that is changing the workplace is also changing the way we study and learn. For example, the internet makes it easier than ever to deliver high-quality, scalable education outside the traditional classroom.

    So I want to see a new focus on adult learning, part-time study and workplace training to give Britain’s workers the skills they need and they deserve.

    I’m working on this with colleagues across government. I can’t tell you too much of the detail right now. But it’s something you’ll be hearing a lot more about it in the weeks and months ahead.

    Now the fifth item on my to-do list regards maintaining and growing Britain’s status and reputation as a global trader.

    Britain has always been a trading nation. As we just heard from the Lord Mayor. As Andrew Sentence wrote in the ‘Telegraph’ over the weekend, trade has underpinned British success and growth for almost a thousand years.

    In fact the position of First Lord of Trade – the predecessor of the President of the Board of Trade – was created half a century before Walpole became the first Prime Minister.

    We have unrivalled cultural and political ties with nations across the world. But in recent years we have not always excelled at turning them into profitable trade links. We can and must do better, particularly with emerging economies and new markets.

    Our export strategy sets out some of the steps we’re taking to make this happen. I’m chairing the Export Task Force, bringing all of government to bear on the issue. You can’t fail to have noticed our new Exporting is GREAT campaign, bringing British businesses together with customers around the world. And when Mark Price arrives in the department later this year, at the top of his in-tray will be implementing the reforms of UK Trade and Investment that were put in train by Lord Maude.

    UKTI has a wide-ranging and well-resourced worldwide network. I want to make sure it focuses all its energy on what really matters – supporting British exporters and attracting inward investment.

    And let me take this opportunity to thank Lord Maude for all he has achieved as Minister of State for Trade and Investment. Over the past 3 decades, Francis has been a fantastic servant of his country, his party, his government and, above all, British trade and industry. I’m sure I speak for everyone here today when I say that he will be sorely missed, and wish him all the very best.

    On the subject of international trade… Some of you may have missed it, as the media silence on this subject has been deafening. But later this year there will be a referendum on whether the UK should remain a member of the European Union.

    Now I, personally, have no time for ever-closer political union. But, like the City Corporation, I accept the UK does well from being part of a 500-million strong single market. I see the benefits of the many trade agreements that have been negotiated by Brussels in the 4 decades since we joined. And I recognise that it could take many years to replicate that position following a British withdrawal.

    However, regardless of whether we vote to stay or go, one thing is clear. In 2016 we can’t afford to only trade with the close and the familiar. The world is too big, the international marketplace is too diverse to simply stick with our neighbours on the continent or our Anglophone allies.

    Finally, my sixth priority is to ensure that the benefits of business growth are felt not just here in the Square Mile but right across these islands. The United Kingdom is one nation, and we are a one nation government. Not a government for big business, or a government for the south east of England. But a government for the whole nation.

    So supporting local growth is the forefront of my department’s work, including continuing the success of local growth deals. My department has played a key role in delivering the Northern Powerhouse and Midlands Engine, helping the region I was born in and the region where I now live to make the most of their incredible potential.

    In line with my wider approach to industry, such support and interventions are led by those ‘closest to the action’. An entrepreneur in Stockton knows far more about the economic needs of the north east than a civil servant or politician sitting in Whitehall, and is far better placed to take the lead through fora such as Local Enterprise Partnerships.

    So there you have it. Six themes, 6 ideas, 6 priorities, 6 goals. Taken together they form a vision for what is an ambitious strategy. But one that I believe we can, and should, reach out for.

    Over the past 6 years, all of us – businesses and politicians alike – have worked hard to turn around Britain’s economy. We’ve gone from a record-breaking recession to record-breaking employment. From the world’s biggest bailout to world-leading growth. And it has been an incredible rise, but having gone from rescue to recovery, we now face a new task.

    We have to build on what we have achieved. We have to consolidate our gains.

    Doing so requires a new way of working, a new way of looking at business. It’s not enough to rely on what worked before. The world has already moved on and if we stand still we will be left behind. Change is well overdue in business policy, and change is what I am delivering.

    Tonight I’ve set out what that change will look like. And I look forward to working with all of you to give British trade and industry the support it both needs and richly deserves.

    Thank you.

  • Sajid Javid – 2016 Speech on Venture Capital

    Below is the text of the speech made by Sajid Javid, the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, at the Savoy Hotel in London on 1 March 2016.

    Thank you, Tim, and good evening everyone.

    I see a lot of familiar faces here.

    It’s always great to be asked to speak to organisations like the BVCA.

    I was in finance a lot longer than I’ve been in politics, so it always feels a bit like coming home!

    And it’s kind of fitting to be here at the Savoy, halfway between the Square Mile and Westminster, between my first career and my second.

    Of course a lot has changed in your industry since I left Deutsche Bank in 2009.

    For example, last month I saw that there’s a new kid on the VC block.

    Sesame Street.

    Seriously!

    The company behind the children’s TV programme is going to invest in start-ups in education and health.

    We’ll see finance brought to you by the letters I, P and O.

    And, having met plenty of VC people during my time in the City, I’m confident that Oscar the Grouch will fit right in!

    Don’t worry Rob, I’m not talking about you!

    J. Paul Getty once said that the secret of success in business was to rise early, work late… and strike oil.

    It’s sound advice, up to a point.

    But most businesses need a more reliable source of finance.

    And that’s where private equity and venture capital really come into their own.

    Now, more than ever, you have a vital role to play in Britain’s economy.

    And I’m proud to stand here tonight and say that the private equity and venture capital sector has the full support of the Business Secretary.

    I know that’s not always been the case in the past.

    It’s all too easy to paint you as vultures or parasites.

    And let’s face it, no politician ever lost votes by being too harsh on people working in finance!

    But such days are behind us.

    I know just how important your work can be.

    I know that, far from being the bloodsuckers of internet myth you actually breathe life into companies.

    You don’t strip out jobs, you create them.

    You put your money where your mouth is, and take the kind of calculated risks that benefit us all.

    When I worked in emerging markets I saw, again and again, how a little faith from investors at the right time can make all the difference.

    You take an idea, see its potential, and give it the boost it needs to become reality.

    When you get it right, everyone wins.

    And when you get it wrong… Well, you’re the biggest losers.

    Fortunately that doesn’t happen very often!

    BVCA members are currently investing more than £5 billion in more than 700 companies in the UK.

    Together, those companies employ well over 100,000 people.

    And of course the vast majority are SMEs with high growth potential, which means they’re likely to go on and create many more jobs in years to come.

    It’s clear that your confidence is coming back.

    [Political content removed]

    Equity investment in small businesses grew by more than 40% in the year to October.

    You’re also making a real difference right across the country.

    Three-quarters of BVCA members’ investment goes outside London.

    You’ve recently doubled the level of investment in my home region, the West Midlands.

    That’s a real boost for the region as we work to fire up the Midlands Engine.

    And a real sign that you’re ready, willing and able to back exciting, innovative ideas wherever they may be.

    That’s particularly important right now.

    Last week I attended the annual conference of British manufacturers, I spoke there in fact.

    And one message that came through loud and clear from all the speakers was that manufacturing is changing.

    That industry is changing.

    That as we enter this fourth industrial revolution the greatest demand in advanced economies is not going to be for raw materials, but for ideas.

    New ways of thinking

    New ways of working.

    New ways of manufacturing.

    In the past we’ve thought of cutting-edge start-ups as something limited to Silicon Valley and Tech City.

    However, in 2016 those labels are becoming less important.

    The lines between industry and technology are becoming blurred.

    That change brings with it incredible potential for economic growth.

    But only if the right finance and funding is available.

    And only if the people holding the purse strings can match the vision and ambition of the innovators themselves.

    That means you, by the way!

    But I’m not going to tell you to go out on a limb on your own.

    My department, and the government as a whole, is and will remain a committed partner in helping you support innovative companies to develop and grow.

    The British Business Bank is playing an active and collaborative role.

    So far its VC Catalyst, Angel Co-Fund and Enterprise Capital funds have facilitated new finance of almost £1 billion for nearly 500 businesses.

    On top of that, the bank will shortly be calling for innovative and ambitious investment strategies for delivering debt and equity finance through the £400 million Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund.

    So get your thinking caps on!

    We’re also committed to delivering a tax system that incentivises investment in growth and innovation.

    So far we’re offering Venture Capital Trusts (VCTs), the Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS) and the Seed Investment Scheme.

    And there’s no doubt this trio of measures are working.

    In 2014 to 2015, VCTs issued £435 million of new shares and currently have investments in over a thousand companies.

    And in one year alone the EIS facilitated more than £1.5 billion of investment in not far short of 3,000 businesses.

    It’s pretty clear that it’s playing a pivotal role in supporting a vibrant, early stage equity culture.

    In fact the schemes have proved so successful that we sought and secured State Aid approval for letting them provide additional support to knowledge intensive companies.

    Exactly the kind of companies that will be shaping the future of British industry.

    When those companies are ready to go public, we want it to be as easy as possible for them to do so.

    That’s why we abolished stamp duty on Alternative Investment Market shares and made them eligible for ISA investments.

    We have also worked with the London Stock Exchange as it has introduced such innovations as the High Growth Segment.

    It allows high growth potential businesses to list on the main market with an initial free float of as low as 10%.

    And of course we’re also doing everything we can to make Britain the best place in the world to start and grow a business.

    So we’ve extended the doubling of small business rate relief until 2017.

    We’ve cut corporation tax to the lowest level of any major economy.

    We’ve lifted hundreds of thousands of businesses out of employer National Insurance contributions.

    We’ve set the highest ever permanent level for the annual investment allowance.

    And we’ve got Research and Development tax credits, the Patent Box and Entrepreneurs’ Relief, all of which encourage further investment in innovation and ideas.

    We’ve slashed £10 billion of red tape for business, and are committed to cutting another £10 billion by 2020.

    And the Enterprise Bill, currently before Parliament, will create a new Small Business Commissioner to give SMEs a stronger voice.

    But we can do more, and we are doing more.

    We need to ensure that the UK has the research base and the productivity levers in which innovative high-growth companies can start, grow and compete globally.

    Last summer, as you may have seen, we launched a plan called Fixing the foundations.

    It’s our cross-government plan for increasing productivity right across the economy.

    Our vision for increasing long-term investment in people, capital and ideas, as well as making markets more dynamic.

    That includes everything from increasing the quality and quantity of apprenticeships, to reforming the planning system, to changing the way the government supports growing companies who want to export.

    Alongside this, at the Spending Review, I was able to secure an investment of almost £7 billion as part of the national science capital commitment.

    I also protected today’s £4.7 annual billion resource funding in real terms.

    Together, this underlines my commitment to keeping the UK a world leader in science and research.

    We’ve created Catapult centres that help business and researchers turn great ideas into commercial reality.

    And, building on this, we’ll shortly be publishing a National Innovation Plan to ensure the UK remains an international beacon for bright ideas.

    The plan will bring together ideas, levers and investment from across government, so we can create the right conditions for businesses to innovate and grow.

    These are the businesses that are the key to our country’s economic future.

    And that’s why your role in backing them through their early development and growth phase is tremendously important.

    But it’s not just about cold, hard cash.

    Venture capital and private equity at its best is about more than just providing funding for companies to develop, grow or restructure.

    It’s about nurturing talent too.

    About helping talented yet inexperienced entrepreneurs to devise and implement long-term growth strategies.

    About understanding what it takes to help a high-potential business through the development, early growth and scale-up phases.

    And that’s where the people who been there and done that a thousand times before, people like the BVCA members here tonight, can really add something special to the mix.

    It’s your wisdom, understanding and long-term commitment that brings the greatest rewards.

    And that’s why you can do so much more than any politician or civil servant ever could.

    You’ve been there, you’ve done that, you’ve seen what works and you know what doesn’t.

    And it’s that knowledge, that experience, that will turn the next generation of great British ideas into the next generation of great British businesses.

    That will turn exciting innovations into real-world jobs and growth.

    What you do isn’t easy.

    It isn’t easily understood and all too often it’s not even popular.

    But it is absolutely vital to the future of our economy and our country.

    And I’m proud to say that both myself and the government support you all the way.

    Have a great evening.

  • Baroness Anelay – 2016 Speech at Seminar about Freedom of Religion and Economic Prosperity

    baronessanelay

    Below is the text of the speech made by Baroness Anelay on 2 March 2016.

    Good morning everybody. May I begin by thanking Louise Ellman MP, Chair of the APPG on the Baha’i Faith for organising this event; and Jim Shannon MP, Chair of the APPG on International Freedom of Religion or Belief for his kind words of welcome.

    This morning I would like to set out the British Government’s policy on human rights and, specifically, on freedom of religion or belief. Given the role of the APPG for the Baha’i Faith in organising this seminar, I would like to say a few words about the situation for the Baha’i in Iran; and because of its relevance to us all I will touch on Daesh. I hope that this will give you an idea of where the Government stands on these issues, and a sense of the kind of things we do around the world to protect and promote human rights.

    I have said before, and I think it bears repeating, that freedom of religion or belief is not just an optional extra alongside the broad spectrum of human rights. It is a key human right in and of itself.

    Support for human rights and freedom of religion or belief is at the heart of everything we do, not just in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office but right across government. We maintain a constant dialogue on all aspects of human rights with our international partners. We do not shy away from raising concerns with them, both in public and in private.

    This Government has pledged to “stand up for the freedom of people of all religions – and none – to practise their beliefs in peace and safety.” We are committed to defending this right, as set out in Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

    With intolerance on the rise almost everywhere, from the Middle East to Europe to the United States, this commitment is needed more than ever. We are working hard to promote and protect freedom of religion or belief, through our bilateral and multilateral work, through project work and through increasing the religious literacy of British diplomats. We have refreshed and strengthened our approach since the last election. Our focus is on three themes.

    Democratic values and the rule of law.

    Strengthening the rules-based international system.

    Human rights for a stable world.

    Our support for the principle of freedom of religion or belief runs through them all.

    Let me give you some examples.

    Where Freedom of Religion or Belief is not fully respected, it follows that democratic values and the rule of law are not fully implemented. That is why we fund projects which bridge divides, promote tolerance and encourage dialogue.

    For me, one of the keys to success is education. We need to ensure that children appreciate – from the earliest age – that for a society to flourish, everyone must be valued equally. One of the projects we fund helps to develop lesson plans for primary school teachers in the Middle East to help them instil these values.

    Mindful of democratic values and the rule of law, we also lobby governments when we have concerns about individual cases of discrimination or persecution. For example, in Sudan, we lobbied on behalf of Meriam Ibrahim, who was born a Muslim but charged with apostasy for marrying into the Christian faith.

    Our diplomats in Geneva and in New York are strengthening the rules-based international system by working to ensure that resolutions focus on the full definition of Article 18, not just the issue of religious intolerance.

    Elsewhere, we raise issues with individual countries bilaterally, or under the Universal Periodic Review process.

    For example, in Burma, we have raised our deep concern at the rise of hate speech and religious intolerance with the Burmese authorities and will continue to do so, both publicly and in private.

    We have supported a number of projects, including developing relationships between Burmese youth and different religious communities, and arranging exchanges between activists on religious freedom in Burma and Indonesia.

    In Iraq, we are funding a project to prevent intolerance and violence toward religious communities by strengthening the ability of youth and civil society to advocate the right to freedom of religion or belief.

    Finally, and perhaps of most relevance to the discussion today on the link with economic prosperity, we focus on human rights for a stable world.

    We do this because we know that tolerance and inclusion are the building blocks of stability, not hatred and discrimination.

    We do this because we know stability is the foundation for prosperity.

    And we do this because we know that where people live together in harmony, and economies flourish, extremism struggles to take root.

    I know that there are representatives of the Baha’i faith here today, and I would like to pay tribute to the work of the All Party Parliamentary Group in raising awareness of the suffering they have endured. This Government deplores all forms of persecution, including persecution on the basis of a person’s faith – no matter what that faith might be.

    Turning to Daesh, there is no need – for this audience or any other in the civilised world – to detail the ways in which their intolerance is abhorrent.

    What I will say is that we are determined to defeat this poisonous ideology. We welcomed the UN Secretary General’s Action Plan for Preventing Violent Extremism, with its focus on tackling the root causes. We will support its implementation, not only in the UN but also in individual states, as they develop their own action plans.

    Our counter-extremism work has a conscious focus on human rights and on freedom of religion or belief. In many places we are working with faith leaders.

    In Bangladesh, Mali and Nigeria we are helping communities resist the lure of extremist ideologies.

    In Iraq we are tackling intolerance by inspiring key community leaders to become defenders of freedom of religion or belief.

    In Goma, Eastern DRC I visited a UK-funded project supporting reconciliation and tolerance for sexual violence survivors. We are working with faith leaders to build community support groups, challenging the stigma many survivors face.

    I hope that all this shows our absolute commitment to improving human rights and supporting and promoting freedom of religion or belief around the world.

    I will turn now to the focus of today’s discussion, the link between religious freedom and prosperity.

    I admire the pioneering work of my fellow speaker Dr Grim in this area. His work is needed, because sadly economic cost is often more persuasive than human cost, no matter the misery we see on our TV screens night after night.

    Governments need hard economic proof, and to validate it they need proof from different sources.

    So it makes absolute sense to get business engaged in this agenda, lobbying alongside governments and civil society.

    I know that Professor Grim is keen to see improvements in the business climate to ensure that individuals from all backgrounds and faiths can realise their potential.

    I am pleased to say that we in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office already support his aims through our international engagement. Through our work on business and human rights, we regularly encourage other governments to create an operating environment that is stable, secure and transparent.

    To conclude, I hope I have shown just how seriously we take the issue of Freedom of Religion or Belief.

    I very much value the efforts of parliamentarians, NGOs, think tanks and others, and the emerging work on the link between religious freedom and economic prosperity. I look forward to further collaborating on this with you.

    I will finish with the words of the Prime Minister: “Now is not the time for silence. Now is not the time for inaction. We must stand together and fight for a world where no-one is persecuted because of what they believe.”

    It is an inspiring call to action – let’s work together to make it a reality.

  • Philip Hammond – 2016 Speech on Alternatives to EU Membership

    philiphammond

    Below is the text of the speech made by Philip Hammond, the Foreign Secretary, at Chatham House in London on 2 March 2016.

    In just 16 weeks’ time, Britain will face a decision that will shape the course of our nation’s history for a generation or more: Should we remain within the European Union on the terms negotiated by David Cameron or should we withdraw from membership and go it alone?

    The Government’s clear view is that we are stronger, safer and better off remaining within a reformed European Union; Stronger, because our global influence is enhanced by being a leading member of the world’s largest trading bloc, safer because of the work we do together with EU partners to strengthen our defences against organised crime and terrorism, and better off because of our access to a market of 500 million consumers. The deal that the Prime Minister won in Brussels twelve days ago ensures that the UK can remain in the EU with a special status: outside the Euro; outside Schengen; with an opt-in on Justice and Home Affairs matters, an exemption from ‘ever closer union’ and a new mechanism to limit access to our benefits system for EU migrants.

    That deal protects British jobs by ensuring a level playing field in Europe for British business, safeguarding the pound and the Bank of England. It will boost EU competitiveness by completing the European Single Market, prioritising international trade agreements, and cutting the burden of EU regulation. And it provides an emergency brake to limit access to our benefits system for EU migrants and gives us new powers to exclude criminals and to stop exporting child benefits at UK rates.

    I think that’s a good deal for Britain.

    And as the British people decide whether to take it and remain in a reformed European Union, offering Britain the best of both worlds or to take a leap into the unknown, I want to shine some light on what a future outside the EU might look like for Britain. Because the Leave campaign have so far failed to do so.

    On Monday we published a paper setting out the process by which we would exit the EU following a ‘leave’ vote. Today we are publishing a paper outlining the principal alternatives to membership. I am laying the paper in Parliament this morning and it will be available online. I now want to summarise our main findings.

    But first, I want to be clear about the process of negotiating an exit, and our future relationship with the EU. Because it would become the defining national project for several years. A vote to leave on June 23rd would trigger a two year window, under the terms of the Treaties, for the UK to negotiate the terms of our exit from the EU. And in the meantime, we will be able to offer British businesses no assurance at all about their future access to EU, or for that matter, to other markets. We will have nothing to say to American, Japanese, Chinese companies looking for a base in which to invest to supply the EU market. Our economy would literally be on hold, whilst our competitors, including our European competitors, forge ahead.

    And at the end of two years, there is no guarantee at all that we would have reached agreement, but our exit would be automatic unless every single member of the remaining EU agreed to an extension.

    Our access to the Single Market would cease. Our trading agreements with more than 50 markets around the world would lapse, with an immediate and negative effect on confidence, on growth, on investments, and on jobs.

    Years of uncertainty for Britain, just as we are getting back on our feet.

    And, like any divorce, the negotiations with our former EU partners are likely to be difficult. The leaders of the remaining Member States would have their own pressing domestic political calculations to consider. In many cases people in their countries already think that they’ve gone the extra mile for Britain. They’d be frustrated that having done that, to offer Britain a special – and unique – status in the EU, their efforts had been in vain. And frankly they’d be apprehensive as well, apprehensive of the ‘contagion’ that a Brexit might bring to their own countries.

    So let’s be clear, if we reject the special status the Prime Minister has painstakingly negotiated, then we can expect the goodwill that we have seen towards Britain during these negotiations to evaporate with them. The blunt fact is that our former partners in Britain will not feel that they owe us any favours; they will have no interest in helping us to thrive outside the EU.

    And to those who argue, as some have done, that “they need us more than we need them”, I say “sadly not the case”. Even if the only factor was trade, and it certainly isn’t, the fact is that in 2014 half of the goods Britain exported went to the EU – just 7% of the goods the EU exported came to the UK.

    Our exit negotiation and our attempts to forge some sort of new relationship are likely to involve some tough and protracted discussions.

    So what, realistically, are the alternatives?

    At different times, the various Leave campaigns have suggested over 20 different models to choose from including the current EU deals with Norway, Switzerland, Iceland, Lichtenstein, Canada, Turkey, Korea, Macedonia. Even Peru and Vanuatu!

    But they have been unable to settle on one. In fact, they have deliberately avoided trying because they cannot point to an example which is better than the special status within the EU that we now have on offer. Every other option has significant drawbacks. And the simple truth is that we cannot know what deal a Britain outside the EU would end up with.

    The evidence, however, and that is what this paper is about today, suggests that there are three basic models:

    – The Norway model;

    – The bilateral model. A negotiated bilateral agreement, such as the free trade deals used by Switzerland, Canada, Korea and Turkey;

    – or as a default, the WTO (World Trade Organisation) model.

    Let me take each in turn.

    Norway

    Norway, along with Iceland and Liechtenstein, is a member of the European Economic Area (EEA), but not the EU.

    And Norway is the non-EU country with the greatest, although still not total, access to the Single Market. It does have the same access in services as the UK has now. But it is outside the Customs Union, meaning that all trade in goods between the EU and Norway is subject to customs checks and Rules of Origin. And it faces tariffs in agriculture and fish.

    Norway does also take part in some areas of non-economic co-operation, like counter terrorism. But it pays a price for these privileges. It has to adopt most EU rules, without any say in making them. It pays roughly the same into the EU per person as the UK does.

    And, crucially, it is obliged to accept the free movement of people from both EU and EEA countries: migrants in Norway have the same right to access benefits as Norwegians. Today, there is a higher proportion of EU nationals resident in Norway than there is in the UK.

    The case of Norway neatly demonstrates the dilemma for Leave: the price of access to the single market is freedom of movement. And the more access to the market they promise, the more empty the boast that they would be able to unilaterally control migration from the EU.

    And I say this: If we care about real sovereignty, about being able to shape the decisions which affect us, then the Norway model is definitely not for us.

    Bilateral

    What if we were to make a bilateral agreement? After all, the EU has a broad range of trade agreements with other countries, such as Switzerland, Turkey or Canada.

    Some recommend the Swiss model. But it has taken Switzerland two decades to negotiate more than one hundred separate agreements that it currently has with the EU. Even then, they only have partial access to the Single Market. They face barriers for agriculture and, crucially from our point of view, for services. And once again, they are bound by the principle of free movement of people, with almost four times as many resident EU nationals per capita as in the UK.

    Others point to Turkey as a model to follow. Now Turkey of course is a candidate country for membership and has been in a Customs Union with the EU since 1995. It has full access to the single market for industrial and processed agricultural goods, where it is subject to EU regulations, but no access for raw agricultural products nor again, crucially, services.

    As part of the Customs Unions, Turkey must align its external tariffs with the EU. And when the EU signs a trade deal with a third country, Turkey must open its market on the same terms. But this is not reciprocal, and the third country is not obliged to open its market to Turkish exports.

    Turkey does not take part in policing and criminal justice measures; has only limited co-operation on international security, and it has no say in EU decision-making.

    And our conclusion is that the Turkish model would clearly not work for Britain.

    What about Canada? The EU-Canada deal has taken seven years and counting to finalise and has still not been approved by the European Parliament! When it happens, and it will happen, it will be the most extensive bilateral agreement the EU has ever made. It gives market access without the free movement of people, and without paying into the EU budget. But Canada is not a European country. And let’s be clear: the Canadian trade deal does not even remotely replicate the access we have as an EU member.

    Canadian manufacturers will only have tariff-free access if they meet EU ‘rules of origin’. So Canadian products, like cars, with complex international supply chains may still face tariffs. Canadian financial services providers can’t supply directly to the EU market. They have to set up subsidiaries inside EU member states operating under EU regulations; exporting Canadian jobs. This would really matter for Britain: our services sector is four-fifths (80%) of the UK economy. We are the second largest exporter of services in the world. And the EU is our largest market for those services.

    The EU also sets regulatory standards on many products: cars, pharmaceuticals, toys, foodstuffs and Canada won’t have a say over any of them.

    The fact is, none of the bilateral free trade models would offer anything like the access we have now to the Single Market and many of them would require adoption of EU regulations and freedom of movement rules. What about Britain’s trade with the rest of the world? We currently benefit from EU trade deals with over 50 different countries. And these deals have been based on the negotiating muscle of a bloc with 500m consumers and a quarter of the world’s GDP. Renegotiating them as a single country would take many, many years. Years in which British businesses would be squeezed out of traditional markets and with no guarantee at the end of the process we could get terms as good as we have now.

    Some have said we should focus our attention on deals with the Anglosphere and the Commonwealth. But the EU already either has, or is negotiating, trade deals with all the biggest Commonwealth countries, and none of our allies wants us to leave the EU. Not Australia, not New Zealand, not Canada, not the US. In fact, the only country who would like us to leave the EU is Russia. That should tell us all we need to know.

    WTO

    Let’s look for a moment now at the default option – the World Trade Organisation rules, which is where we will end up if we leave without a deal agreed. For anyone who wants to ensure a clean break with the EU, the WTO model is the only honest model. WTO rules mean we could sell into the Single Market, but at a price: The EU imposes a ‘common external tariff’ on goods and services from countries outside the EU who don’t have free trade deals agreed.

    10% on cars. 30% on confectionary. 36% on dairy produce.

    Our exports would cost more and so be less competitive. That will cost British jobs. And if we reciprocated, our imports would cost more too meaning higher prices in our shops.

    And that would not be all. Under WTO rules, we couldn’t differentiate between countries. So, for example, if we decided to allow Irish goods to enter the UK tariff-free, we would have to do the same for all 160 countries in the WTO – putting British jobs at risk from foreign competition.

    Because, as EU members, the common external tariffs protect our industries from undercutting from outside the EU, while allowing us to import from Europe without tariffs pushing up costs. Outside the EU, it would be all or nothing under WTO rules.

    And for our crucial services sector, without a preferential trade agreement, UK businesses would only be guaranteed access under the General Agreement on Trade in Services. This is a much more basic framework, providing much less access to markets.

    So on even a cursory inspection, the WTO model does not deliver for Britain. It would be bad for business; bad for jobs; bad for growth. Bad for Britain.

    Our choice: leadership of a reformed EU or a leap into the dark
    The truth is, the Leave campaigns cannot point to a credible alternative. They are unable or unwilling to address their core dilemma: the price for any significant level of access to the single market for goods, let alone services, is acceptance of free movement of people. The EU has been remarkably consistent in its dealings with other European countries. And the more access to the single market the Leave campaign promises, the more hollow their pledge to limit EU migration.

    So what should we conclude from this analysis? That none of the ‘post-exit’ options offer anything close to the best-of-both-worlds, special-status, deal that the Prime Minister has negotiated in the European Union. And the most often cited model, Norway, would offer us, quite literally, the worst of both worlds. Paying as if we remained a member of the European Union, subject to the European Union and obliged to observe the principle of free movement to gain access to the single market that we have now, without any say in how those rules are made and without any say over how the European Union is run.

    Negotiating any kind of arrangement with 27 countries we that have just rejected will almost certainly take years, will not give full access to the Single Market without contributing to the budget, accepting all the rules, allowing free movement, and will leave us with no seat at the table. To me, that’s less sovereignty, not more sovereignty.

    Balancing the burdens and the benefits, none of the options that are remotely likely to be deliverable comes close to matching the deal that we already have on the table.

    So why would we take a leap in the dark?

    Why would we risk the effect of years of uncertainty on the British economy?

    Why would we take that chance with our children’s future – risking our influence, our prosperity and our security?

    When by voting to remain, we can have the best of both worlds in a reformed EU; rather than the worst of both outside. A powerful voice inside Europe; instead of a lonely voice outside. A Great Britain, stronger, safer and better off within the EU.

    Thank you.