Thursday Volume 566 18 July 2013 No. 39 HOUSE OF COMMONS OFFICIAL REPORT PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES (HANSARD) Thursday 18 July 2013 £5·00 © Parliamentary Copyright House of Commons 2013 This publication may be reproduced under the terms of the Open Parliament licence, which is published at www.parliament.uk/site-information/copyright/. 1295 18 JULY 2013 1296 Vince Cable: The hon. Gentleman is correct to say House of Commons that our overall export performance would improve considerably if more British companies were exporting. The big contrast with Germany is that roughly twice as Thursday 18 July 2013 many of its small and medium-sized enterprises are involved in exporting. UKTI has been substantially The House met at half-past Nine o’clock reformed in the past couple of years, and it now has a much more small and medium-sized company focus. It has activities around the country, and we have a lot of PRAYERS evidence that its outreach is substantially improving. I hope that it will reach the companies in the hon. Gentleman’s constituency too. [MR SPEAKER in the Chair] Mr Iain Wright (Hartlepool) (Lab): At the last Business, Innovation and Skills questions, the Secretary of State Oral Answers to Questions admitted: “The figures on exports are not great”.—[Official Report, 13 June 2013; Vol. 564, c. 470.] Since then, the UK trade deficit has widened to the BUSINESS, INNOVATION AND SKILLS point at which it is now the largest trade gap in the European Union, and the widest it has been since 1989. Following on from the question from my hon. Friend The Secretary of State was asked— the Member for Blaenau Gwent (Nick Smith), will the Technology Exports Secretary of State tell the House whether he is happier with export performance this month? What changes to policy or priorities will he now make to facilitate an 1. Sir Bob Russell (Colchester) (LD): What assistance export-led recovery, or does he not think that changes his Department provides to UK technology companies are necessary? with exports; and if he will make a statement. [165958] The Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills Vince Cable: Monthly variations are not the issue, (Vince Cable): My Department helps UK technology but there is an underlying problem. British exporters exporters through UK Trade & Investment. In 2012-13, are currently doing extremely well in the big emerging UKTI helped more than 3,000 companies with technology- markets. We have rapid export growth to countries such related exports, and it is set to help more than 3,500 in as Russia, China, India and Brazil, for example, but 2013-14. exports to the eurozone are weak, for obvious reasons. We accept that there are underlying weaknesses. We Sir Bob Russell: I am grateful to the Secretary of have not had the recovery of export volume growth that State for his answer. He will be aware of my concern we would expect following a substantial devaluation. that officials in his Department are perhaps not operating Much of this relates to the way in which supply chains a level playing field, in that American companies exporting were hollowed out in the long period of manufacturing products from their country are treated more favourably decline, but we are trying to rebuild them through the than companies in this country producing exactly the industrial strategy. same products. Will he give me some clarification as to what is going on? Automotive Industry Vince Cable: First, I should explain that the Minister for Universities and Science, my right hon. Friend the 2. Mr Marcus Jones (Nuneaton) (Con): What recent Member for Havant (Mr Willetts), who might have support his Department has given to the automotive answered this question, is currently at Chequers for a industry. [165959] Cabinet away day. My hon. Friend the Member for Colchester (Sir Bob Russell) is an assiduous defender of his constituents, their companies and their jobs. He has The Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills discussed this matter with me, and I have pursued it. It (Vince Cable): The automotive industrial strategy was is not the case that Britain is more difficult than the launched on Friday by the Department in association United States when it comes to clearing export licences, with the Automotive Council. In partnership with industry, but I have none the less established that we should we will invest around £1 billion over 10 years in a new dispense with some procedures relating to quarterly advanced propulsion centre. reporting, and we will do so. We will also work with the company in question to try to establish whether an open Mr Jones: I met a number of business people from general licence can operate in this case. the motor manufacturing supply chain recently, and the main theme of the meeting was skills, and what we Nick Smith (Blaenau Gwent) (Lab): A survey by the could do to help to increase the skills in the sector, in Federation of Small Businesses has found that only one which there is now a real resurgence. Will my right hon. in five of its members uses UKTI services. What steps Friend explain a little more about his strategy? Will he will the Secretary of State take to encourage UKTI to tell us what part skills will play in it, and what more we work more closely with small businesses? can do to help the supply chain? 1297 Oral Answers18 JULY 2013 Oral Answers 1298 Vince Cable: My hon. Friend is absolutely right. The Alison McGovern (Wirral South) (Lab): If the regional Automotive Council has identified skills shortages as a growth fund is to be at all successful, it must not only key problem. As a result of the adoption of the strategy create jobs but improve the skills base in our country. document, the industry has committed itself to a significant What checks has the Minister put in place to make sure growth in the number of apprenticeships. We have that this actually happens? already seen a considerable increase, but he is right to suggest that this is an issue not simply for the big Michael Fallon: The regional growth fund makes original equipment manufacturers but for the supply grants not simply to projects and individual companies, chains, and a lot more needs to be done to make the car but to programmes organised by local enterprise industry seriously competitive through skills. partnerships and other private sector organisations, many of which focus on improving the level of skills in Mark Pawsey (Rugby) (Con): Will the Secretary of these particular areas. State comment on the success of the sector and the impact on the supply chain? On Friday, I had the Mr Philip Hollobone (Kettering) (Con): Would my benefit of meeting a small business in my constituency, right hon. Friend be kind enough to accept an invitation Automotive Insulations, which supplies products to, to visit the site of the proposed junction 10A on the among others, Jaguar Land Rover and Bentley. It is A14 near Kettering, which has attracted the interest of looking to move to a new 60,000 square foot building, the Department of Energy and Climate Change, the to employ a further 60 people and to generate £1 million- Department for Transport and the Department for worth of investment over the next few years. Communities and Local Government? An investment of £30 million in the regional growth fund could trigger Vince Cable: This is indeed a very successful industry. private sector investment of more than £1 billion. Over the last couple of years, we have had commitments to something in the order of £6 billion-worth of new Michael Fallon: Happily, I have not fully finalised my investment. One factor has undoubtedly been the confidence summer plans, so I shall add to them this visit to a that the Government are fully supportive of the industry motorway junction. [Laughter.] My hon. Friend makes and are working with it through the Automotive Council. a serious point: there is clearly a bottleneck that needs The confidence factor is indeed spreading into the to be removed. I will see if I can accept my hon. Friend’s supply chain. There are very good economic reasons invitation. why a significant amount of the supply chain that has been offshored should now be onshored—and that Traineeships process is beginning. We want to do everything we can to encourage it. 4. Mark Menzies (Fylde) (Con): What steps he is taking to encourage traineeships. [165961] Regional Growth Fund The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Skills (Matthew Hancock): Following the spending review, we 3. Eric Ollerenshaw (Lancaster and Fleetwood) (Con): have extended the traineeships programme to young What recent assessment he has made of the performance people up to the age of 24. Yesterday, we published the of the Regional Growth Fund. [165960] framework for delivery, and the first traineeships will start next month. We have already had strong interest The Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation expressed from employers such as Mercedes and Brompton and Skills (Michael Fallon): The regional growth fund is Bicycle Ltd. We very much look forward to taking the a success. Last week, I published our first annual monitoring programme forward. report, which shows that job creation in rounds 1 and 2 is on track. With our accelerated timetable, we have Mark Menzies: Skills delivery is at its best when it is now completed the contracting process with all but a led by employers and by businesses. Can my hon. Friend handful of beneficiaries in rounds 1, 2 and 3. Last week, assure me that that will remain the case throughout? I also announced that in round 4, 102 selected bidders will have access to over £500 million.