Spending Review

Stephen Mosley Excerpts

Wednesday 26th June 2013 Commons Chamber

[Mr Osborne]

I am happy to look at both the flexibility and the timing, and to make sure that my Department works closely with the devolved Administration in Belfast.

[Stephen Mosley (City of Chester) (Con)]

Will the Chancellor do his utmost to ensure that all local authorities take advantage of the council tax freeze, which he has generously extended today?

[Mr Osborne]

I hope that all local authorities take it up, but ultimately that is a matter for them—that is local democracy.

Cyprus

Stephen Mosley Excerpts

Monday 18th March 2013 Commons Chamber

[Greg Clark]

Not having been part of the negotiations, it is difficult for any Member of this House to know what the alternative was. The elected representatives of the Cypriot Government clearly accepted what was proposed in contemplation of a fate that they considered to be worse, which was the collapse of the Cypriot banking system. This is a situation that none of us wants to be in. Thank goodness that in this country, as a result of being outside the eurozone and having introduced discipline into our finances, we are not going to be.

[Stephen Mosley (City of Chester) (Con)]

We may well find that some of the biggest British losers are people who are in the process of buying or selling property in Cyprus. Can the Minister offer any reassurance to people who may have lodged money with a solicitor in an escrow account, for example, that the solicitor will be responsible for the losses and not the person who is trying to buy a property?

[Greg Clark]

My hon. Friend raises an important point. I have made a commitment to the House to provide further statements once we have more detailed information on how all these arrangements are likely to apply.

Oral Answers to Questions

Stephen Mosley Excerpts

Tuesday 12th March 2013 Commons Chamber

[The Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury (Mr David Gauke)]

I shall take that as a Budget representation, but it is worth pointing out that at the last autumn statement the annual investment allowance was increased tenfold.

[Stephen Mosley (City of Chester) (Con)]

Has my right hon. Friend seen the recent report from Barnardo’s that highlights the reduction in child poverty in some inner-city areas such as inner London? That is because there are significantly more families in work than there were this time last year.

Economic Policy

Stephen Mosley Excerpts

Monday 25th February 2013 Commons Chamber

[Mr Osborne]

Actually, the unemployment rate is lower today than when we came into office, and there are 1 million more people with jobs in the private sector than there were two years ago. Families want to know that the Government are determined to tackle the nation’s problems, to keep rates low, and to ensure that we provide the right environment for business. They have our assurance that we will do that.

[Stephen Mosley (City of Chester) (Con)]

One of the problems highlighted by the Moody’s downgrade was the sluggish nature of international growth. Will the Chancellor use the forthcoming G7 Finance Ministers meeting in May to argue for the reduction of barriers to international trade, to encourage other countries to keep on the path of lowering their own debt, and to try to ensure that we generate the international growth that will benefit all countries?

[Mr Osborne]

I agree with all the sentiments expressed by my hon. Friend. Of course, all countries in the western world are confronting their debt problems. When it comes to trade, one of the big initiatives we need to pursue in the next couple of years, principally through G8 leaders rather than the G7 Finance Ministers, is the possibility of a free trade agreement with the United States. It was encouraging that the President mentioned that in his inauguration speech. That is one objective, alongside EU free trade agreements with India and Japan, that we should pursue in the coming months.

Oral Answers to Questions

Stephen Mosley Excerpts

Tuesday 11th December 2012 Commons Chamber

[Greg Clark]

As you well know, Mr Speaker, dark pools allow one party to keep important details from other parties, which is a fair description of the economic policies of the Labour party. I say to the hon. Lady that the providers of pension funds are very clear that to over-regulate the dark pools would lead to a reduction in people’s pension pots. They have said that over the course of a 40-year pension fund this would require the pension fund holder to work an extra year. That is not in anyone’s interest.

[Stephen Mosley (City of Chester) (Con)]

Will my right hon. Friend update the House on the progress the Government are making in implementing the recommendations of the Kay review of equity markets and long-term decision making?

[Greg Clark]

I certainly commend John Kay for the clarity of his review, and we are taking steps, both in Europe and domestically, to implement his recommendations.

LIBOR (FSA Investigation)

Stephen Mosley Excerpts

Monday 2nd July 2012 Commons Chamber

[Mr Osborne]

I completely understand and sympathise with the sentiment that the hon. Gentleman is expressing: people suffer criminal penalties for offences involving much, much smaller sums of money—a fraction of the sums that we are talking about. The Serious Fraud Office, which is independent of the Government, is looking at the matter. Let us wait to hear what it has to say. It is looking at what laws are available to let it do that. I am sure that he would not want the Government of the day to undertake the criminal prosecutions themselves.

[Stephen Mosley (City of Chester) (Con)]

What powers and sanctions will the parliamentary Committee of inquiry have should witnesses refuse to attend, refuse to answer questions or mislead the Committee?

[Mr Osborne]

Parliamentary Committees have a whole set of powers available to them. Ultimately, as I understand it—the Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury might correct me if I am wrong—the House itself can call witnesses to Parliament through a vote. That power is available to us—[Interruption.] That is absolutely the case. [Interruption.] What I find astonishing is Opposition Front Benchers’ lack of confidence in Parliament—in the House of Commons, in the House of Lords—to do this job. Looking at how they treated Parliament over 13 years, perhaps that is not surprising. I have confidence in Members from both sides of the House to do the job being asked of them.

Business and the Economy

Stephen Mosley Excerpts

Monday 14th May 2012 Commons Chamber

[Stephen Mosley (City of Chester) (Con)]

It is a pleasure to follow the hon. Member for Stoke-on-Trent Central (Tristram Hunt). At one point, I thought that he might actually admit that the problems in our economy had been generated over the past 10 years rather than at the time of the general election. He almost did that, but not quite.

Most people appreciate that if we run up a massive credit card bill, the longer it is ignored, the worse the debt gets, and the more it costs to repay. The disastrous condition of the British economy and the public finances that we inherited just two years ago cannot be underestimated, yet Labour fails to accept responsibility for the damage that it inflicted and also refuses to agree on any sensible measure to help to clear up its mess.

The decisions that this Government are taking to rebalance our economy and build for a sustainable future might not be entirely popular in the short term, but they are the right long-term decisions to take. If we compare our current economic situation with those of countries to which we were most closely linked when the coalition took office—countries such as Greece, Spain, Portugal and Italy were also borrowing massively more than they could afford—we can see the different paths that have been taken over the past two years. We need only to watch the news, read the newspapers or look at interest rates to see that whereas the UK can borrow today at less than 2% interest, Italy pays 5.4%, Spain over 6% and Greece over 22%. It is plain for all to see the dire straits from which we have been rescued by the Government.

Reducing the deficit must be and is the No. 1 priority of the Government. Their plan is supported by the International Monetary Fund, the OECD, the Governor of the Bank of England and the major credit rating agencies. Indeed, both the IMF and the OECD have said that without reducing the budget deficit there can be no sustained growth.

Yes, it is fair to say that growth has not been as we had hoped over the last two years. The international situation and the continuing problems in the eurozone have proved to be a drag on the UK economy, but the reality is that the tough decisions we have taken to clear up Labour’s mess have laid the foundations for long-term growth and prosperity. Consequently, the IMF now forecasts the UK to grow at twice the rate of Germany over the next year and three times faster than France. The coalition Government have set our country’s economy in the right direction, and the measures outlined in the Queen’s Speech will help to ensure that we continue with that underlying mission.

On the specific measures in the Queen’s Speech, I welcome the announcement of an enterprise and employment Bill. As the Chancellor has set out on numerous occasions, the Government have four overarching ambitions for the British economy: first, to create the most competitive tax system in the G20; secondly, to make the UK the best place in the world to start and grow a business; thirdly, to encourage inward investment and exports; and, fourthly, to create a more educated and flexible work force.

On tax, we have reduced the headline rate of corporation tax, meaning that it will fall to 22% by April 2014, with the small business rate falling to just 20%. We have scrapped Labour’s jobs tax; we have doubled entrepreneurs’ relief; and we have announced numerous measures to address the complexity of the tax system. To help businesses take off and grow, we have improved the Government’s Business Link service and we have introduced a new business mentoring programme. We have launched a national loan guarantee scheme, providing up to £200 billion-worth of guarantees, allowing banks to offer lower-cost lending to small and medium-sized enterprises.

On exports, the Government have set out major new initiatives to help more SMEs to export and to help larger companies seeking to win major overseas contracts. On skills, we have vastly expanded the availability of apprenticeships through funding incentives and the slashing of red tape. The introduction of the enterprise and employment Bill will build on the work already achieved and help to make Britain one of the most business-friendly countries in the world.

I welcome, too, the introduction of a banking reform Bill. Labour’s failure to fix the roof while the sun was shining played an enormous part in our economic downturn, and the culture of unrestrained risk practised by the banks, at the expense of hard-working savers, certainly made a bad situation worse. Again, building on the action taken in the first Session of this Parliament, the banking reform Bill will help to protect us from the prospect of a similar banking crash occurring in the future. The recommendations of the Vickers report are to be welcomed. It is right that banks should not be able recklessly to gamble with people’s hard-earned savings. We need proper regulation, and I look forward to the Bill being put before the House.

I warmly welcome pretty much all the Government’s programme as outlined in the Queen’s Speech. Rome was not built in a day, and our economy cannot be rebuilt in just a couple of years, but the last two years have put the foundation stones in place for a prosperous and a sustainable future. We achieved a great deal in the first Session of this Parliament, but there is still a great deal more to be done. Last week’s Queen’s Speech is an excellent step in the right direction.

Amendment of the Law

Stephen Mosley Excerpts

Wednesday 21st March 2012 Commons Chamber

[Stephen Mosley (City of Chester) (Con)]

I welcome the measures that my right hon. Friend the Chancellor announced in his Budget—measures that continue to lay the foundations of an economy underpinned by enterprise, opportunity and wealth creation. The European and global economies have had a torrid time over the past two years, but the Chancellor has been unwavering in his commitment to bringing our spending and our deficit under control. Unless we do that, we have no chance of creating the future economic success that we all desire. I am delighted that the Chancellor is taking strategic decisions on how our economy should evolve and compete in future.

[Jane Ellison (Battersea) (Con)]

The right hon. Member for Southampton, Itchen (Mr Denham) completely ignored all the announcements about corporate tax rates. I wonder whether my hon. Friend will cover those rates, and the way that they incentivise business growth.

[Stephen Mosley]

Corporate tax rates, of course, are one incredibly important area, but there are many others. In my speech, I shall concentrate on some of the issues that the right hon. Member for Southampton, Itchen (Mr Denham) talked about, to do with investment.

Many people rightly ask, “How will we, in Britain, earn our living in the global marketplace of the future?” Like the Chancellor, I believe that there are sectors in which the UK can take a global lead, in which we have the ability to excel, and that have the potential to generate growth for future generations. The one that I will concentrate on is the digital economy.

The UK’s information technology and telecoms industry makes a gross value added contribution to the British economy of some £81 billion a year. That is around 9% of the total economy—it is a very similar figure to that for the financial services industry. Around one in 20 members of the work force—1.5 million people—are employed in IT and telecoms. There are around 100,000 unfilled job vacancies being advertised, and it is estimated that more than 500,000 new IT and telecoms professionals will be needed over the next five years. By exploiting the full potential of the technology industry, we could boost the UK economy by an additional £50 billion over the next seven years.

The Chancellor’s speech gave extremely encouraging signs that investment in information and communications technology is set to continue, but more needs to be done if we are to harness our real potential to make our country a global leader in the digital economy. We have a world-class base from which to grow further, but we require proactive engagement from the Government if we are to speed up growth and increase the economic potential of ICT businesses. We must be much more vigorous in promoting the industry to stimulate wider and sustained economic growth.

[Ian Lucas (Wrexham) (Lab)]

I am listening carefully to the hon. Gentleman’s speech, not least because he is my neighbour, and I agree with much of what he has said, but does he not regret that the Government put back the delivery of universal broadband by three years, from 2012 to 2015—two years after it will be delivered in Morocco, which I visited last week?

[Stephen Mosley]

If the hon. Gentleman, my neighbour, will bear with me for 30 seconds, I will get to broadband.

[Jake Berry (Rossendale and Darwen) (Con)]

That is very fast.

[Stephen Mosley]

Ultra-fast is, I think, the current term. Mr Deputy Speaker, I know that you have been involved with the Parliamentary Internet Communications and Technology Forum. We recently arranged a series of meetings with parliamentarians and industry representatives, including the UK chief executive officers of some the world’s leading IT businesses—for example, Facebook, Intel, IBM and Fujitsu, among many others.

The universal message emanating from the meetings was that the UK technology industry must be promoted by Government whenever possible, and that greater care is needed if the UK is to attract, train and retain the highly skilled individuals who will help our economy to grow. Specifically, five key recommendations were made. The first had to do with the broadband issue: the Government must speed up the roll-out of superfast broadband. I totally support that, which is why I am absolutely delighted to welcome the Chancellor’s commitment to investing more than £780 million in broadband infrastructure to make sure that Britain has the best superfast broadband network in Europe by 2015. I am also pleased about the Government’s commitment to start the roll-out of 4G mobile networks, with the spectrum auctions planned for later this year.

[Mr Graham Stuart (Beverley and Holderness) (Con)]

Does my hon. Friend agree that we must reverse the disastrous collapse in the number of graduates coming out of universities with computer science degrees, which took place over the last decade in which the previous Government were in power?

[Stephen Mosley]

It is funny that my hon. Friend should say that, because our group’s second recommendation was that the Government should increase investment in ICT in schools. I was pleased to hear the Chancellor highlight the importance of education in building our skills base, because if any industry hopes to compete and thrive, the fundamental basis is the skills base of the domestic work force. My right hon. Friend the Education Secretary recently announced a shake-up in the way that computing is taught in schools. That follows calls from industry and academia, who suggest that ICT in schools is too focused on the use of specific software packages, and not focused on the underlying technologies or on learning the computer programming skills that will help to encourage young people to develop their own products and be on the cutting edge.

Rebalancing the curriculum is a vital step, but there also needs to be greater emphasis on the quality of ICT teaching in schools, along with a concerted effort to champion future careers in the sector. I have already outlined the huge significance of IT for the wider UK economy, yet since 2002 there has been a 33% reduction in applications for computing degree courses. More must be done to encourage our young people into an ICT career if we are to reap all the potential benefits to our economy.

[Diana Johnson (Kingston upon Hull North) (Lab)]

Does the hon. Gentleman share my disappointment that the Education Secretary has not included ICT as one of the core subjects in the English baccalaureate, and therefore as one of the key areas that our young people need to study?

[Stephen Mosley]

The English baccalaureate covers the key core skills we want people to learn. ICT is an important skill, but I do not think it should be included in the baccalaureate, which covers maths, English, basic sciences—the basics. IT is a highly skilled area. Some people might be suited to study it, but others might not. Those who have an aptitude for it should pursue it and achieve.

Thirdly, it is imperative that the UK trains and retains world-class individuals. Over the past decade, the UK has become a receiver of technology developed abroad, which has slowed down the development of technology in the UK. The overriding message coming from industry is that the single most important criterion when deciding where to make new investment is whether the skills to support the investment are available in that location. We have the broad skills base in this country to push on and achieve great things, but without the right commitment and investment—such as in ICT apprenticeships—the UK risks being left behind by our global competitors.

Fourthly, we need a strategy to encourage the take-up of new technology by small and medium-sized enterprises, and to encourage their growth and development. Specifically, it was recommended that the Government can assist by encouraging venture capital investment for the longer term. We have a huge wealth of talent in the UK but, in order for our entrepreneurs to grow their ideas into successful long-term businesses, they often have to sell their ideas and businesses abroad. A prime example of that is the once globally dominant UK computer games industry, which is now mainly foreign-owned and seeing future investment disappearing offshore. I was therefore extremely pleased to hear that the Chancellor will focus on that industry. If we want our smaller businesses to flourish, we should be encouraging investment to help nurture existing small businesses to become medium-sized businesses, and medium-sized businesses to become large ones.

I pay tribute to the Government for their catapult centre programme. We in the UK have always been on the cutting edge of technology, but our inability to transfer intellectual advances to market has often proved to be a stumbling block. The new catapult centres will help to commercialise the results of research in technology areas where there is potential for multi-billion pound global markets, including the digital economy. That is to be wholeheartedly welcomed.

Finally, the Treasury must emphasise and reiterate the importance of technology to the economy and commit to the long-term opportunities that the sector has to offer. We in the UK are attracting world leaders in new and emerging technologies to our shores. We have the skills base, the flexibility and the economic foundations to encourage more companies to invest here. The Government must champion the technology sector more vigorously if we are to harness its great potential to act as the catalyst for long-term growth in the United Kingdom. I am delighted that, as spelled out in the Budget, the Chancellor and the Government are now grasping that opportunity.

Banking (Responsibility and Reform)

Stephen Mosley Excerpts

Tuesday 7th February 2012 Commons Chamber

[Mr Umunna]

I agree with my right hon. Friend. I know that that is something for which he has campaigned for a long time.

We all know the facts. From the middle of 2007, the losses sustained on securities backed by sub-prime mortgage assets led to a credit crunch. That credit crunch came about due to a loss of counterparty confidence and uncertainty about which financial institutions held toxic assets. Depressed asset prices and increased losses led to serious solvency issues in major banks here and in the United States.

In the US, Bear Stearns had to be rescued by J. P. Morgan, Lehman Brothers collapsed, and AIG was nationalised in 2008 by that well known socialist, the 43rd President of the United States, George Bush. Here, Northern Rock had already been nationalised by the Labour Government by 2008. Later that year, we put in place a £500 billion package of measures designed to recapitalise the banks. That included the special liquidity scheme and inter-bank lending guarantees. The Labour Government took stakes in two of our biggest banks so that, by the end of 2009, the Government held a stake in Lloyds of just over 40% and a stake in RBS that increased to more than 80%.

For all the criticism that is often heaped on my right hon. Friends the Members for Edinburgh South West (Mr Darling) and for Kircaldidy—sorry, for Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath (Mr Brown)—by Government Members, I believe that we owe a debt of gratitude to them both for the decisive action that they took to save the system from itself, to secure people’s savings and to ensure that the people we represent could continue to withdraw money from cash machines in the wall. The Opposition are proud of what they achieved.

As the Independent Commission on Banking stated:

“without the intervention of national authorities around the world—requiring taxpayers to incur significant direct costs and larger contingent liabilities—the consequences of the crisis would have been immeasurably worse.”

It is for that reason that this House has every right to take an interest in remuneration and reform in the banking sector. After all, our banks still benefit from an implicit taxpayer subsidy if they fail.

[Stephen Mosley (City of Chester) (Con)]

The Financial Services Authority blamed political pressure for the failure of RBS. Is the hon. Gentleman saying that the FSA is wrong?

Northern Rock

Stephen Mosley Excerpts

Monday 21st November 2011 Commons Chamber

[Mr Hoban]

We were dealt a hand by the previous Government. We inherited their ownership of Northern Rock. We inherited their holdings in Lloyds and RBS. Our judgment was that this was the right time to sell the business. The deadline imposed upon us by the European Commission acted as a spur to this. Looking at the prospects for Northern Rock under state control and comparing them to the prospects for Northern Rock under Virgin Money’s control, most sensible people would say that it was better that Northern Rock was owned by Virgin Money than by the state.

[Stephen Mosley (City of Chester) (Con)]

The employees of Northern Rock were cheering last week, but is this not also a vote of confidence by Virgin Money in the economy of the north-east and in the Government’s handling of the British economy as a whole?

[Mr Hoban]

That is right. We have a significant new entrant in the financial services market that is prepared to buy Northern Rock, to invest in the future of the operations in Gosforth and to provide job security there. It is a vote of confidence. It demonstrates that there are people out there who want to be part of our financial services market and who want to offer a good deal to consumers.