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Exports
8. Mr. Matthew Banks: To ask the President of the Board of Trade what recent measures his Department has taken to promote United Kingdom exports. [15029]
Mr. Lang: Through the Overseas Trade Services organisation, my Department and the Foreign and
Commonwealth Office provide the best ever package of information, advice and practical assistance to British companies. I am glad to say that British exports now stand at an all-time record level.
Mr. Banks: I thank my right hon. Friend for his reply. Will he confirm that the Government have put in place other substantial measures to help British exporters win contracts overseas? Does he agree that it is important that British diplomats abroad are concerned not only with good diplomacy, but with continuing to bat hard to help British companies win export orders, which secure British jobs at home?
Mr. Lang: My hon. Friend is right. Foreign and Commonwealth Office staff are engaged in commercial work in overseas posts in 140 markets to help our exporters. My Department is also active, with many staff covering nearly 200 markets. Last year, we helped 10,000 individuals to go on overseas trade missions and 23,000 firms to take part in trade fairs.
Mr. Barry Jones: Is not sterling hopelessly overvalued? What will the Government do about that? Why do they not move to help British industry?
Mr. Lang: The hon. Gentleman seems to be unaware that British exports are at a record level and are generally expected to reach a higher record next year. Exports have doubled since the last Labour Government were in power in 1979; since 1979, they have been increasing at twice the rate at which they grew under Labour.
Mr. Nicholas Winterton: While we all accept that the value of the pound influences the competitiveness of our exports, does not manufacturing industry want, when exporting, a stable economy, low inflation, low interest rates and a Government who understand industry? Is not that what my right hon. Friend can do to help our exporters, more than anything else? Is that not confirmed by the fact many overseas industrialists, including those in Europe, believe that Britain is the best place to come and do business?
Mr. Lang: I agree with my hon. Friend. I am sure that his remarks will do more to help British industry than will those of the right hon. Member for Dunfermline, East (Mr. Brown), who, we are told, is in America talking Britain down.
Mr. Shore: The Secretary of State is getting complacent. It is, I hope, true that our exports are at a record level, but are not our imports at a record level, too? Are we not running a trade deficit this year, as we have for the past six years?
Mr. Lang: The right hon. Gentleman should be aware that many of our exports are re-exported imports and, as such, contain a substantial proportion of imports. Our current account is close to balance and at its strongest for a decade. Provided that we stick with the policies that are delivering that success, we have nothing to fear about our balance of payments.
Mr. Lidington: Does my right hon. Friend agree that the appalling unemployment in Germany and France will
make life more difficult for British exporters who try to sell into those important markets? Would it not be the worst possible service to British exporters for a Government to seek to impose on Britain the job-destroying measures that have wrought such havoc on continental Europe?
Mr. Lang: My hon. Friend is right. It is significant that Britain exports more per head than Japan, the United States, France or Germany. It is by keeping labour markets flexible and lightening the burden on business that we have been able to secure that result. The most damaging thing that could happen to our exporters would be for them to face the social chapter and the European social model that the Labour party wishes to impose.
Mr. Bell: May I assure the House and those who watch this programme on their televisions that the future Labour Government will do as much as and more for our exports than the present Government. We will improve our export position and have a better position on our balance of payments and trade; we will show who is better able to govern the country.
Will the President of the Board of Trade take the opportunity to congratulate the World Trade Organisation on the multilateral agreement to open the world's telecommunications market? Is that not the way for our future trading arrangements to proceed? Will he give as much support to the opening of negotiations on financial services that begin in March, which will also be of great benefit to our export community?
Mr. Lang:
I certainly share the sentiments expressed in the latter part of the hon. Gentleman's question. I congratulate those responsible on securing that extremely satisfactory result, for which the British Government have also worked hard over the past three years. It will be of immense value, with £20 billion--worth of additional business for this country. It is part of our free trade agenda, which, sadly, we do not share with the Labour party. On the question of the Labour party's prospects of producing a satisfactory environment for our exporters, I prefer to listen to the words of the Labour peer, Labour's economics guru, Lord Desai, who said in The Sun today:
"Labour's biggest obstacle is the economy. It is in great shape. There is steady growth and low inflation. Compared to Germany and France, it looks the best economy in Europe."
Mr. Dover:
Will my right hon. Friend accept the grateful thanks of the construction industry, which pays tribute to the efforts of the export promoters--on secondment from the private sector--and to the able leadership shown by his team of Ministers in various trade missions around the world? Those efforts have led to billions of pounds of exports for the British construction industry and the highest volume of exports of bricks.
Mr. Lang: I am grateful to my hon. Friend. In addition to the trade missions and trade fairs I mentioned earlier, last year 21,000 United Kingdom participants in overseas events were assisted. It remains my purpose and that of Ministers in my Department to continue to support the export effort in every way we can.
Firework Safety
9. Mr. Burden: To ask the President of the Board of Trade if he will make a statement on the progress of his review of firework safety regulations. [15030]
Mr. John M. Taylor: As an initial response to the review, I introduced regulations in December that prohibit the supply of aerial shells to the public. I hope soon to be able to announce my overall response to my Department's discussion document.
In the meantime, I should like to report that the total number of firework injuries in Great Britain last firework season was 1,233--a reduction of 19 per cent. on the previous year. I shall place those figures in the Library.
Mr. Burden:
I thank the Minister for having responded positively to repeated calls from the Opposition to introduce a ban on aerial shells. He mentioned a figure of about 1,200 injuries; those shells were responsible for two deaths in the past year. Is he aware that the temporary ban will be welcomed by reputable firework manufacturers, and that some on the fringes of the firework industry are seeking to get round the ban? What monitoring system has he put in place to ensure that the ban is effective? When will he introduce a national training scheme to ensure that aerial shells are available only to those certified competent to use them?
Mr. Taylor:
I did not respond to Labour when I took action at the end of last year; I responded to a thorough-going consultation that I initiated.
Voluntary training has an important role to play in encouraging the safe use of fireworks. Trading standards officers will have my full support in their surveillance work.
Sir Irvine Patnick:
Many people present for this programme will recollect that it used to be called Question Time--I do not know whether Labour Front Benchers have had a new idea. I come from the old school of sparklers and catherine wheels; the worst thing we had was bangers.
Mr. Nicholas Winterton:
It is a bit of a damp squib.
Madam Speaker:
Order. I want to hear the jokes, too, but I cannot.
Sir Irvine Patnick:
It is rare that one is heckled from one's own side of the House.
I hope that, after the consultations, the enjoyment that some people have had in this theatre, programme or Chamber will not be stopped and that, through legislation, powers will be given to local authorities to control the sale of certain types of firework that should never have been imported into this country.
Mr. Taylor:
In the spirit of that question, I shall content myself by saying that, in my experience, sparklers can be more dangerous than bangers.
10. Mr. Ian Bruce:
To ask the President of the Board of Trade what assessment his Department has made of the amount of investment currently being made by the formerly publicly owned utilities. [15031]
Mr. Page:
Since privatisation, managers have been free to set investment at the levels needed to secure long-term benefits, while responding to competitive and regulatory pressures. That is contributing to a sharp increase in efficiency, to the benefit of consumers.
Mr. Bruce:
I thank my hon. Friend for that answer. Does he believe that the investment being made by the utilities is creating real British jobs in our economy? What does he think would happen if the Government of the day decided to take £10 billion out of that investment programme and put it into make-work schemes? Would that destroy those real jobs, as has happened around the world when those failed policies have been tried?
Mr. Page:
The Government firmly oppose a windfall tax on the grounds that it would be very hard to establish on a fair and non-hybrid basis. I have to tell my hon. Friend and the House that this is not a windfall tax--it is not free. It is an old-fashioned smash and grab--in modern parlance, a ram raid--and it will bring only higher prices for pensioners, while at the same time bringing them lower private pensions. It will be a double whammy.
Mr. Battle:
I remind the Minister that no less a body than the Institute of Directors has said that, in its view, the utilities have spare cash, and that the impact of any windfall tax would be insignificant. If he is satisfied with the levels of investment in the privatised utilities, will he explain why registered customer complaints against water companies have increased by nearly 90 per cent. and against the former British Gas by more than 100 per cent.? The Government's own former Energy Minister, within weeks of resigning, told the Select Committee on Trade and Industry that regulation needed overhauling because of high profits and lower service. What are the Government going to do about stopping service levels declining further--or can we expect only inaction as usual from the Government?
Mr. Page:
The hon. Gentleman obviously has no experience of business whatsoever. I remind him that, before privatisation, the taxpayer in this country had to put his hand in his pocket to subsidise those state activities; now those same state activities give £2.6 billion in corporation tax every year to the Exchequer. A heavy windfall tax will no doubt cause a dip in those figures--it will be a treble whammy. As regards the hon. Gentleman's remarks about standards of service, I refer him to what has happened with British Telecom--for example, 95 per cent. of phone boxes are in operation, whereas only 75 per cent. were in operation when the company was run by the state.
Sir Roger Moate:
Do not the shareholders of those companies include small investors, many pension funds and many foreign investors? Would not Labour's proposed windfall tax inflict serious damage not only on
Mr. Page:
My hon. Friend makes a very important point. At present, this country is doing exceedingly well from inward investment. We are getting the lion's share of investment in the European Union--everyone is investing in this country. What a message the Labour party is sending to prospective inward investors: "Be careful if you invest in Britain, because we might impose a retrospective windfall tax upon you."
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