"My Lords, is not the real problem here our chronic dependency on borrowing? Debts have tripled over the past 20 years in spite of our fiscal rules. Has the Minister found the time to read the insightful report of the Economic Affairs Committee on our fiscal architecture—45 pages, 22 sparkling …..." Lord Londesborough - View Speech
"My Lords, returning to the original Question asked by the noble Lord, Lord Leigh, does the Minister agree that what really matters is growth in GDP per capita, where we sit near the bottom of the G7—given our population growth over the past five years—and that this has happened at …..." Lord Londesborough - View Speech
"My Lords, I, too, salute the noble Lord, Lord Bridges of Headley, for securing this critical, timely debate and for his compelling opening remarks. It was a pleasure to sit on the Economic Affairs Committee under his astute chairmanship, especially during our inquiry into the sustainability of our national debt. …..." Lord Londesborough - View Speech
"My Lords, I support Amendment 100, in the name of the noble Baroness, Lady Northover. I spoke in support of this type of amendment at Second Reading and I still support its intentions, but I will give it an added twist. The question in my mind is where this resource …..." Lord Londesborough - View Speech
"My Lords, I shall speak to Amendments 7, 9, 11, 76, 77 and 88 to 91 in the name of my noble friend Lord Birt, each of which I have added my name to, and to Amendment 87 in the name of the noble Lord, Lord Clement-Jones...." Lord Londesborough - View Speech
"My Lords, when it comes to visitor levies, surely one size does not fit all. Applying them to small, family-run operators in our struggling coastal towns will inflict further damage on already weak competitor positions. Where is the evidence that applying Manchesterism to places such as Blackpool, Skegness and, indeed, …..." Lord Londesborough - View Speech
"My Lords, it is getting late, and I am told that we are now competing with the Spain v France World Cup semi-final—the winner may well face England in the final—so I will try to be brief. I speak not as a cyber expert or technologist but as a former …..." Lord Londesborough - View Speech
"My Lords, the Government’s White Paper Get Britain Working aims for an 80% employment rate, but 20 months on we remain stuck at 75%. With the recent steep drop in new recruits, can the Minister, who I welcome to her position, point to where these 2 million net new jobs …..." Lord Londesborough - View Speech
"My Lords, why is it that, while our SMEs’ share of local government spending has increased to 33%, their share of central government contracts remains flat at just 16%—nowhere near the three-year target. I realise this question may be something of a gift for the Prime Minister in waiting, but …..." Lord Londesborough - View Speech
"My Lords, I must thank my noble friend Lady Deech for securing this debate, which has been appositely framed with the words “affordability and quality”. I will tackle these words from an economic angle and from an employer’s perspective, reflecting, in part, on my own experience. Before I go down …..." Lord Londesborough - View Speech