Manufacturing: Investment Growth Forecast

Lord Young of Norwood Green Excerpts

Tuesday 5th July 2011 Lords Chamber

[Lord Young of Norwood Green]

My Lords, it was more than a shock for Bombardier employees who have lost their jobs. Even more worrying, perhaps, is its ability to bid for future contracts, such as Crossrail. The point I want to emphasise is that British manufacturers are failing to capitalise fully on the weak value of the pound as factory growth lags behind continental nations led by Germany. The purchasing managers’ index of UK factory output fell to 51.3 per cent last month, just above the 50 per cent—

[A noble Lord]

Reading!

[Lord Young of Norwood Green]

I will be—that marks the divide between expansion and contraction. That is the lowest reading since September 2009. What steps are the Government going to take to ensure that British manufacturing is able to respond to an environment where the value of sterling should enable it to have a competitive advantage?

[Baroness Wilcox]

We are having a competitive advantage in countries such as China and India, where we are growing. That is very important to us. Competing with our European colleagues is one thing, but taking new business abroad from the BRICs is even more important to our country at this time.