Manufacturing and Engineering
Debate between David Simpson and Neil CarmichaelWestminster Hall is an alternative Chamber for MPs to hold debates, named after the adjoining Westminster Hall.
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David Simpson (Upper Bann) (DUP)
I agree entirely with what the hon. Gentleman has said, and I congratulate him on obtaining the debate, but does he agree that we urgently need to look at the cost of doing business? I was in the manufacturing business for more than 30 years, and the cost of manufacturing in this country has gone through the roof. Something needs to be done to help businesses to export and manufacture more.
Neil Carmichael
The hon. Gentleman is absolutely right. That is at the nub of the issues I am coming to. I thank him for his intervention, and I am grateful for his support.
Lots of firms are supporting my festival of manufacturing, and I should name them because they are doing a huge amount. Renishaw is a fantastic engineering firm with factories in my territory. It is really innovative and good at coming up with new products, and it is determined to promote exports. Incidentally, it is also interested in the protection of patents.
There is also Nampak Plastics. One would not think that designing milk bottles was an engineering activity, but it is. Nampak has come up with a milk bottle that is incredibly handy in terms of getting it out of the fridge, but which also uses recycled plastic. Another firm is BPI, which is very effective at turning farm waste products, such as silage wrap, into raw materials for firms such as Nampak to use. WSP—formerly part of Milliken—is the world’s best manufacturer of tennis ball covering and snooker table cloth. It operates in one of the oldest mills in my constituency, and it is a fantastic firm.
There is also Omega, which is a great recruitment firm in the technology sector. I have already mentioned Airbus. Although it is in Filton, near Bristol, it is also supplied by firms in my constituency. That underlines the point that I made about supply chains. Finally, there is Delphi, which makes virtually all the injectors for large, heavy lorries, and it is in Stonehouse.
The policy areas that I want to talk about are straightforward. To begin with banking, I have already mentioned the need for responsive local knowledge, with more emphasis on the plan than on assets, and I want to ensure that the reform of banking, through the Vickers report, brings that about. We must be certain that high street banks and new banks, with new approaches to investment, will be more flexible, and more willing to take early investment decisions. I would suggest that anyone who does not think that is important should go to Germany and ask businesses there what kind of banking they have. They will say that it is exactly what I recommend, and that that is one reason why German firms get started and keep going.