Industrial Strategy

Conor Burns Excerpts

Monday 27th November 2017 Commons Chamber

[Greg Clark]

What I say to the hon. Gentleman is that every time there is a Labour Government, it is a Conservative Government who have to reverse the chaos caused and revive the economy. To give him an opportunity to calm down and reflect on the policies set out in the strategy, let me make him a present of this copy of the White Paper, which I hope he will find inspiring reading. I am sure that he will look at the policies in detail and, when he comes back for the next Question Time, bring himself to commend them.

[Conor Burns (Bournemouth West) (Con)]

I commend my right hon. Friend’s statement. Many of us know how hard he has worked on the strategy, and how widely he has engaged. I invite him to use this opportunity to reaffirm the central role of Britain’s universities in future growth and technological advance. I invite him to visit my constituency and see what Bournemouth University has done to create an incredible new tech sector, resulting in Bournemouth being voted the fastest growing digital economy in the United Kingdom.

[Greg Clark]

I am grateful to my hon. Friend for his comments. The role of universities is absolutely vital. They have worked with us very closely on the development of the strategy. They are central to the local economy in almost every part of the country, and not just in educating the population—local people and those who travel to study—but in the research and leadership they offer. I would be delighted to visit Bournemouth’s excellent university with my hon. Friend, to congratulate it and to discuss how we can take its success forward in the local area.