Employment Law (Beecroft Report) Debate

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Employment Law (Beecroft Report)

Jonathan Ashworth Excerpts
Monday 21st May 2012

(12 years, 6 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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Urgent Questions are proposed each morning by backbench MPs, and up to two may be selected each day by the Speaker. Chosen Urgent Questions are announced 30 minutes before Parliament sits each day.

Each Urgent Question requires a Government Minister to give a response on the debate topic.

This information is provided by Parallel Parliament and does not comprise part of the offical record

Mark Prisk Portrait Mr Prisk
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There has been a substantial shift within the small business base, so that we have seen a higher proportion being sole traders rather than employers. We need to try to encourage more of them to take people on; my hon. Friend is absolutely right.

Jonathan Ashworth Portrait Jonathan Ashworth (Leicester South) (Lab)
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Given the falls in consumption in the economy and given the chronic lack of business confidence, would it not be better for the Minister to come to the Dispatch Box to announce some workable schemes to support manufacturing investment and schemes to support business access to financial credit rather than making it easier to sack people?

Mark Prisk Portrait Mr Prisk
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I say to the hon. Gentleman “Vauxhall”. We are making sure that the British automotive industry is alive and well with £4 billion-worth of investment. I will not be lectured by a party that saw more than a million manufacturing jobs lost.