Royston Smith
Main Page: Royston Smith (Conservative - Southampton, Itchen)Department Debates - View all Royston Smith's debates with the HM Treasury
(5 years, 4 months ago)
Commons ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
Mr Philip Hammond
As I think the hon. Gentleman knows, that position is enshrined in statute, and only this House of Commons could change it.
Royston Smith (Southampton, Itchen) (Con)
More of my Southampton constituents are in work than ever before, but many of their jobs are low-paid, with few career prospects, if any. What are the Government doing to improve employment opportunities for my constituents?
Mr Hammond
We have worked hard to build a stronger, fairer economy, dealing with the deficit that we inherited, helping people into work and cutting taxes for people, families and businesses, and the result is that the economy has grown continuously for the past nine years. Employment is currently at record high levels, unemployment is currently at the joint lowest rate since 1975, and real wages are rising again. We have created 3.5 million new jobs, but the next stage must be about increasing real wages by raising productivity, because that is the only sustainable way to raise the living standards of working people in this country.