Employment Law (Beecroft Report)
Debate between Tony Baldry and Mark PriskUrgent Questions are proposed each morning by backbench MPs, and up to two may be selected each day by the Speaker. Chosen Urgent Questions are announced 30 minutes before Parliament sits each day.
Each Urgent Question requires a Government Minister to give a response on the debate topic.
This information is provided by Parallel Parliament and does not comprise part of the offical record
Mr Prisk
Because, as the Secretary of State rightly points out, we need to ensure that we are able to continue to compete. It is good that we have been able to secure 600,000 jobs in the private sector, but we need more. We are not in the business of trying to scare the workers. We are not somehow trying to rip up their basic rights. We want to ensure that an effective modern economy has the quality and calibre of employees that it needs. That is at the heart of our policies, and I hope that the Opposition will join us and ensure that they do not seek to scare people.
Tony Baldry (Banbury) (Con)
Adrian Beecroft, who is a constituent of mine, has spent a considerable amount of time on this report. Would it not be sensible for right hon. and hon. Members to take the time to read what he has to say before expressing views on a document, the conclusions of which none of them has yet had the opportunity to consider? When they do get around to reading it, perhaps the only test should be whether each recommendation would make the UK more or less competitive.
Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Tony Baldry and Mark Prisk
Mr Prisk
Absolutely right—what we, rather than yourself, Mr Speaker, are doing about it is making sure that we have apprenticeships in place and that we put vocational education, which was neglected by the Labour party, back on a proper footing. We are also making sure that people are able to transfer between engineering firms. There is good news to be told.
Tony Baldry (Banbury) (Con)
6. What progress he has made on local enterprise partnerships; and if he will make a statement.
The Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (Mr Mark Prisk)
Both the number and activity of local enterprise partnerships is continuing to rise. Dorset is the latest to be cleared, bringing the total to 36—or 97% of the country. Of those, 18 now have full board recognition and have begun their work.
Tony Baldry
I am sorry to ask my hon. Friend what I suspect will be perceived as an unhelpful question, but local enterprise partnerships are going to have to raise their game seriously if they are to have any traction or impact. I am sorry to have to report to him that, so far, they seem to have no traction or impact in my area of the country.
Mr Prisk
I am disappointed by my hon. Friend’s comments. I have visited 25 of the 36 LEPs and they are already setting up boards to make sure that they are ready to involve small businesses. Now they are going to be able to lead on enterprise zones, lead on the regional growth fund and make sure that we strip away some of the local regulatory problems on the ground, which I am afraid the Labour party did nothing about.