POLITICS INSIDE


WESTMINSTER


Chris Williamson, MP for Derby North, on the future prospects for Britain’s economy


How Labour plans to support business


Some commentators and politicians like to claim Labour is weak on the economy. A number of critics suggest a Jeremy Corbyn-led Government poses a threat to business. Yet this is nonsense. People often forget it was a Labour Government that rebuilt this country after the


electrification of the Midland Main Line to Sheffield and beyond. Chris said: “The idea that bi-mode trains are


better than electric trains is nonsense. If it held even a whisper of truth then HS2, which won’t begin services until more than a decade after modification of Midland Main Line is finished and the bi-mode trains enter service, would also be going down the bi-mode route. “The fact that HS2 will be electric from top to


bottom, even where it joins Midland Main Line to travel through Chesterfield and Sheffield, refutes the argument mooted by Transport Secretary Chris Grayling. “The Chamber urges Mr Hammond to earmark


and ring-fence the funding needed to ensure full electrification of Midland Main Line, to effectively overturn Mr Grayling’s decision, so that this region can enjoy cleaner and quieter trains and the benefits of a rail system fit for the 21st Century.” The Chamber is also asking Mr Hammond to


look at ways of incentivising companies to invest in improving their resource-efficiency to reduce their carbon-footprints. Mr Hammond is also being asked to ensure


that people who followed Government advice and bought diesel-powered cars because of their better-than-petrol fuel economy, won’t now be penalised with punitive ‘toxin taxes’ or be banned from using their cars to drive to and from work in city centres. In the Q3 QES just over a third of firms


(36.5%) reported a small increase in spend in this area and only 9.1% reported a “significant increase”. Over a quarter of respondents (27%) said they didn’t spend any money in this area. Chris said: “For many years, we have been


encouraging firms to invest in greener initiatives which can often lead to cost savings, so this result is particularly disappointing. This is another area where more work is needed because, ultimately, firms are missing opportunities to scrutinise the way they work and to make potential savings, which could enhance their overall productivity.”


Second World War. “Don’t go making any promises” Churchill warned Attlee, “the country’s broke”. Yet Labour created a virtuous economic model, based on robust growth, fair taxation and redistribution. Labour built the foundations for a long golden era of development that, despite subsequent Conservative Governments, couldn’t be undone. Our country today stands at a similar


‘Despite the rhetoric, austerity and low taxation has not led to a restoration in business confidence’


crossroads to the one faced in 1945, after a long depression and war. The facts for business are clear. The economy lacks no clear avenues for growth. Despite the rhetoric, austerity and low taxation has not led to a restoration in business confidence. Quite the opposite, as even the IMF admits. To take just one indicator, the OBR announced recently that it has been far too


optimistic about Britain’s productivity growth. Successive forecasts that predicted a rise have been revised to show a negative trend. Business knows that low productivity means sluggish growth. There are at least two


reasons for this trend, on top of mounting concerns over Brexit. First that business investment remains low, at only five per cent above its pre-crisis peak, in the era of fictional financial profits. And second, unproductive firms are clinging to life and disincentivised to change course due to endlessly low interest rates. That means British business is just keeping afloat. So why this persistent sluggishness? The simple reason is that the economic logic


driving the Tories also happens to be utter rubbish. The free marketeers that live on in the party believe the intervention of Government crowds out investment. Yet, in circumstances of low growth, the situation is exactly the opposite. What Labour proposes is an entrepreneurial state, one that will crowd-in business. This


will be achieved through investment in infrastructure, an ambitious home building scheme, the development of human capital and, crucially, providing long term patient finance via a national investment bank. All these plans are made clear in our manifesto and additional resources online. After seven years of Tory failure, and despite Labour’s track record after the war, why


does our party attract the criticism it does? The answer to my mind is simple. In the 2010 general election the Tories inched across


the line by blaming Labour for the crash and we, for our part, failed to defend ourselves. Why? Because New Labour, Gordon Brown in particular, cultivated a deep relationship with banks and finance – the exact place from which our economic problems flowed. It’s clear today that British businesses need a new deal. Austerity can’t continue for


much longer, it’s not good for anyone. The invisible hand of the free market has had a chance to deliver and, frankly, it’s so invisible that next to no one has seen a positive outcome. It’s time for some big thinking and real leadership.


ABOUT CHRIS WILLIAMSON Chris Williamson is the MP for Derby North. He was born in Derby and worked as a bricklayer before becoming a social worker and later the leader of Derby City Council. Chris joined the Labour Party in 1976 and became a councillor in 1991, before becoming


Leader of the Labour Group on Derby City Council. He is a member of the League Against Cruel Sports and Vice-Chair of the Local Government Anti Poverty Forum. He is Labour's Shadow Minister for Fire and Emergency Services.


business network November 2017 31


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60  |  Page 61  |  Page 62  |  Page 63  |  Page 64  |  Page 65  |  Page 66  |  Page 67  |  Page 68  |  Page 69  |  Page 70  |  Page 71  |  Page 72