Economy: Growth

Lord Broers Excerpts

Thursday 9th December 2010 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Wilcox]

We are looking across the whole of the manufacturing sector and, in the next few days, we shall bring out a manufacturing strategy to ensure that we are taking our country forward in all areas and at all levels. Of course, the previous Government had some great successes—they should have done; they were in power long enough.

[Lord Broers]

My Lords, when does the Minister think that we will stop our slide down the manufacturing table? I know our output is up but, if she checks the numbers, I think she will find that we are not in fact in sixth position, but in seventh position. I checked that again this morning. The OECD numbers show that we are some 9 per cent behind France, which is in sixth position, and we are 20 per cent behind Italy, which is in fifth position. I am encouraged by what is happening, but I ask the Minister to assure us that this slide will be stopped. Brazil and Korea are snapping at our heels and we will soon be in ninth position unless we do something about it.

[Baroness Wilcox]

My Lords, obviously, we are delighted with any signs of growth and of going forward. The figures read out by the noble Lord are not encouraging, but that does not mean to say that we do not have to try to do the best we can. We know, for example, that advanced manufacturing growth is very important for us, and a review will be out very soon. We are reviewing all the areas in which we can find any growth at all, and I am sure that the noble Lord, fine engineer that he is, will help us in any way he can to encourage us in areas from which he thinks growth will come.