Lord Morris of Handsworth
Main Page: Lord Morris of Handsworth (Labour - Life peer)(9 years, 10 months ago)
Lords ChamberMy Lords, SMEs account for 80% of the tourism industry, so it is extremely important that we help SMEs to flourish through things like the deregulation task force. They are a very important part of the sector. The British Hospitality Association is looking to create further employment by the end of this year, with pledges of 60,000 jobs. The work that the Prison Service and, I think, the Clink Charity are undertaking with restaurants at certain prisons that I have heard of has been immensely successful. This is an example of where, in partnership, we can make some real progress.
My Lords, given the scale of the tourism and leisure sector, and indeed the robust economy that we hear so much about, will the Government at least try to persuade the industry to adopt the living wage?
My Lords, I think that the Government are very clear: where employers are in a position to pay the living wage, we very much encourage it. However, I repeat that a lot of the businesses involved are SMEs and family businesses, and that may not be possible. Still, we very much encourage that, where it is possible, it should be done.