Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Vince Cable and Martin Horwood

Thursday 20th November 2014 Commons Chamber

[Vince Cable]

It demonstrates nothing of the kind. The LEP network is working exceedingly well. LEPs are voluntary organisations; some are outstanding and innovative and others struggle, as this one has done. It is much better that we have a regional network that is business-led and is related to the geography of the area, which was manifestly not the case with the regional development agencies.

[Martin Horwood (Cheltenham) (LD)]

T2. Does the Secretary of State share my concern that the family brand name Weetabix is closing its packet printers Vibixa in my constituency, with inevitable consequences for more than 100 employees and their families, after the company was denied the sales force that could have widened its customer base? Does he agree that when a profitable company closes a profitable subsidiary, it should offer the best possible redundancy terms to its employees, some of whom have served Weetabix for more than 35 years, and not something barely above the statutory minimum?

Pub Companies

Debate between Vince Cable and Martin Horwood

Wednesday 9th January 2013 Commons Chamber

[Vince Cable]

All I can say is that the final version, which I approved and sent out, is the correct statement of where my colleagues and I stand on this.

The evidence suggests that the tie, in itself, is not the issue. It is a valid business model that is used responsibly by companies large and small. It is clear, however, that in some cases the tie is being abused, just as many other business practices can be abused, and it is that abuse that we need to tackle, rather than the tie itself.

There are good grounds for believing that the tie, as such, is not the problem. First, the number of pubs has been declining steadily. The Beer Orders in 1989 and the pubco consolidation in the 1990s resulted in relatively little change in the rate of decline. Secondly, the figures from the past three years, 2008 to 2011, show that the closure rate was lower in tied pubs than in free-of-tie pubs. That is the case regardless of whether we look at the gross or net closure rate, the latter of which takes into account churn by pubcos. Thirdly, the tie does not harm consumer choice. In fact, it sustains and supports the British brewing industry, a successful export industry that has more than doubled since the year 2000.

[Martin Horwood]

I echo what my right hon. Friend is saying about the tie. It has been a valuable source of investment for some pubs in my constituency, including the Royal at Charlton Kings and the Tivoli. The problem is in the power relationship between local landlords and the big pubcos. The “no worse off” principle is an interesting point of debate, but I would still advocate the free-of-tie option, and I strongly welcome my right hon. Friend’s openness to considering that option during the consultation.

[Vince Cable]

My colleague is absolutely right to say that this is about power relationships and how we can prevent them from spilling over into abuse. As I have said, I have an open mind about the precise legal mechanisms that we shall use.

Industrial Strategy

Debate between Vince Cable and Martin Horwood

Monday 10th September 2012 Commons Chamber

[Vince Cable]

I am certainly very happy to talk to my colleague the Secretary of State for Defence about the cost-benefit analysis he will have undertaken in order to make that decision. Historic associations are not really a good base for business decisions; none the less, the right hon. Gentleman has made a case and I will try to establish why that business decision was made.

[Martin Horwood (Cheltenham) (LD)]

May I congratulate the Secretary of State on visiting the Sustainable MotoExpo in my constituency over the weekend, and on the support it demonstrated for green technology design and engineering, which the Government are already giving through bodies such as the Technology Strategy Board? I hope that that continues and increases.

[Vince Cable]

My colleague reminds me of an event that took place on Saturday in Cheltenham that was a very good advertisement for the industrial strategy approach I am describing. The Government have put some £400 million into the development of electric vehicles, and my colleague the Secretary of State for Transport has supported the bounty for charging points. We are now seeing that technology getting to a take-off point. My hon. Friend showed me dozens of examples of small and large car makers in his constituency—led by the Nissan Leaf, which we have been supporting directly—that will make this a major industry in future years.

Green Investment Bank

Debate between Vince Cable and Martin Horwood

Tuesday 24th May 2011 Commons Chamber

[Vince Cable]

I have already said that loans can start to be made from roughly April 2012. There will be substantial activity, and the firm in the hon. Gentleman’s constituency may well be a successful supplier to the industry, but if I were him I would not be too negative about the other sources of finance. The regional growth fund is entering its second tranche, and if it is a good company with a good project, and if there is a good LEP, it will be eligible for that money.

[Martin Horwood (Cheltenham) (LD)]

I strongly welcome my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State’s announcement today—especially if the green investment bank ends up in Bristol, where it can take advantage of Gloucestershire’s expertise in financial services. Will he look positively at allowing the bank to finance, or to play a part in financing, the green deal? That would send a positive reassurance to investors in green deal businesses.

[Vince Cable]

An Opposition Member has already asked me a variant of that question, and I have made it very clear that the green deal is proceeding. It is a successful business model, and we understand the mechanisms by which large-scale investment will be forthcoming, but we certainly do not rule out the possibility of the green investment bank complementing it.

Higher Education and Student Finance

Debate between Vince Cable and Martin Horwood

Tuesday 12th October 2010 Commons Chamber

[Vince Cable]

We have certainly discussed the matter with relevant Ministers, and we can produce a formal analysis of what the policy will mean for different parts of the UK. That is a perfectly legitimate matter to pursue.

[Martin Horwood (Cheltenham) (LD)]

I still support the eventual abolition of all domestic tuition fees, although that is possibly more than six years off now. However, will my right hon. Friend confirm clearly whether he intends less well-off students to pay less while at university than they did under the Labour Government, and less well-off graduates to pay a smaller proportion of their wages in tuition fee repayments?

[Vince Cable]

That is factually correct and has been endorsed this morning by the Institute for Fiscal Studies. My statement was originally going to say that 20% of graduates would pay less than they do at the moment, but I was fortified by discovering from the IFS’s commentary that the percentage is actually 30%. Almost one in three graduates will pay less than they do at the moment under the scheme that the Labour Government introduced.