Middle East: Deployment of British Armed Forces
Debate between Earl of Minto and Lord Woodley(7 months, 1 week ago)
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The Earl of Minto (Con)
My Lords, there are some fundamental rights and justifications that we as a responsible military power need to be prepared to step up and protect. I believe that these decisions are not taken lightly; they are taken extremely seriously. An enormous amount of thought and activity goes into each decision to take action, and that level of thinking should continue.
Lord Woodley (Lab)
Will the Minister confirm that it was three British-supplied drones that killed three British aid workers last week in Gaza?
Small and Medium-sized Enterprises: Interest Rates
Debate between Earl of Minto and Lord Woodley(1 year, 2 months ago)
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The Earl of Minto (Con)
I was not aware that there was this trouble in the hovercraft industry. My guess is that it is something to do with the balance sheet, but I will certainly write to him and we will follow that one up.
Lord Woodley (Lab)
My Lords, the Government hold approximately 39% of share capital in NatWest and therefore are in a very powerful position to influence the bank’s policy and to provide small and medium companies with low-interest financial support. They could even turn NatWest into a specialist support hub. Have the Government presented any specific proposals to NatWest in this regard?
Industrial Strategy
Debate between Earl of Minto and Lord Woodley(1 year, 5 months ago)
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The Earl of Minto (Con)
My Lords, I think the whole House agrees with that point, and I can assure the House that the whole question of the apprenticeship levy and the flexibility thereof is being looked at closely right now.
Lord Woodley (Lab)
My Lords, I have raised my serious concerns about the lack of industrial strategy for the automotive sectors, important as they are for our country. But I also pay tribute to the Government for supporting the Jaguar Land Rover battery plant that could easily have gone to Spain—well done. But does the Minister agree that this is small compared with the billions and trillions being set aside by the EU and the USA to encourage investment, particularly in battery gigaplants? What is our industrial strategy for this important sector, which, clearly, as I said last time, is genuinely at a tipping point?
The Earl of Minto (Con)
My Lords, I quite agree with the noble Lord about the success of the announcement from JLR. It is extremely important that we continue to invest in all sorts of technologies and advances. We are continuing to see investment into that sector. As for where the tipping point comes, I am not quite clear. But I will go back and write to the noble Lord with specifics.