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Backbench Business
17 September 2020
Lead MP
Rosie Winterton
unknown constituency
Lab
Debate Type
General Debate
Tags
No tags
Other Contributors: 26
At a Glance
Rosie Winterton raised concerns about backbench business in the House of Commons. Other MPs contributed to the debate.
How the Debate Unfolded
MPs spoke in turn to share their views and ask questions. Here's what each person said:
Rosie Winterton
Lab
unknown constituency
The debate concerns the scheduling and limitations of two Backbench Business Committee debates. Rosie Winterton informs Members that due to high subscription, speeches will likely be limited to four minutes, which may be shortened further as they are running behind schedule. The total time allocated for backbench contributions is expected to be brief with two Front-Bench winding-up speeches.
Nigel Evans
Con
Leyland and South Ribble
Mr. Evans announces the introduction of a four-minute speaking limit due to time constraints.
Stephen Hammond
Con
Wimbledon
Appreciates the Government's coronavirus job retention scheme, noting that it has helped 12,500 people in his constituency. He argues for innovative and effective ways to support jobs rather than extending furlough schemes. Supports targeted infrastructure investment and training incentives for economic development zones.
Kirsten Oswald
SNP
West Tyrone
Intervenes to point out HMRC's estimate that fraudulent or incorrect claims under the CJRS are between 5% and 10%, or between £1.75 billion and £3.5 billion, suggesting further transparency could help extend the benefits of the scheme.
Liz Twist
Lab
Blaydon and Consett
Critiques the Government's decision to withdraw support for jobs and businesses post-lockdown as short-sighted and disastrous. Proposes a flexible, targeted support scheme beyond autumn to save millions of vulnerable sector jobs, focusing on part-time working, training for those unable to return full-time, targeting retail and hospitality sectors, providing certainty for workers and businesses.
Laura Trott
Con
Sevenoaks
Congratulates the hon. Member for securing the debate, highlights the importance of the job retention scheme in saving jobs and being a lifeline during the crisis. Emphasises the disproportionate impact of the pandemic on women's employment, citing statistics from McKinsey. Supports the flexibility provided by the furlough scheme and calls for encouragement of new job creation through green initiatives, support for childcare, and maintaining workplace flexibility.
Expresses concern over the UK facing its worst recession and high number of excess covid-19 deaths. Criticises the Government's intention to end the furlough scheme abruptly and highlights the disproportionate impact on women, particularly in minority ethnic communities. Discusses economic challenges faced by Leicester East constituents, including significant drops in weekly income and a dramatic rise in unemployment benefit claims.
Andy Carter
Con
Warrington South
Acknowledges the importance of the furlough scheme in protecting livelihoods but argues for its phasing out to encourage economic activity. Cites statistics on the number of people protected by the scheme and the percentage returning to work. Emphasises the need for a medium-term approach that restores sustainability to public finances while driving short-term recovery.
Stuart McDonald
Lab
Cumbernauld and Kilsyth
Congratulated his hon. Friend on securing the debate and welcomed the job retention scheme, but argued that there was room for more people to be included in it. He criticised the arbitrary date of 31 October for ending the scheme, calling it disastrous for workers, bad for employers and detrimental to economic recovery. He highlighted that an eight-month extension would save jobs and improve GDP growth. McDonald also called on the Government to consider extending the scheme further or making necessary changes to include those left out.
Interrupted briefly but no substantial contribution was made.
Nigel Evans
Con
Ribble Valley
Ordering the debate and announcing a reduction in speaking time to three minutes per speaker due to high demand to speak.
Anthony Browne
Con
Kinglyate
Praised the Chancellor for coming up with an effective policy that received cross-party support. He highlighted that employment dropped less in the UK compared to other European countries, and noted a relatively low rise in unemployment at 3.9% to 4.1%. Browne argued against the notion of a 'cliff edge' ending furlough, stating that only around 5-10% of workers are on furlough now, with most having returned to work. He emphasised the need for policies focused on helping people find jobs rather than merely protecting them.
Rachael Maskell
Lab Co-op
York Central
The Labour party urges the Government to urgently find a solution to the pending jobs crisis by extending the job retention scheme. They emphasise the human impact of unemployment, pointing out that York is forecasted to lose 22% of its jobs and faces significant economic challenges without continued support. The speaker advocates for more flexibility in the furlough scheme and aid for sectors like tourism and hospitality, citing examples from her constituency such as Great Rail Journeys and workers' redundancy notices.
Dwyfor Meirionnydd
The speaker highlights the importance of extending furlough support for severely affected sectors like tourism, leisure, hospitality and arts. She criticises Westminster's refusal to give more economic powers to Wales, which has led to unfair choices between food and sick pay. She also mentions the difficulties faced by outdoor centres due to conflicting policies from different departments, urging the Government not to end furlough too early for Wales.
Olivia Blake
Lab
Sheffield Hallam
The speaker discusses the economic recession caused by the pandemic and the projected high unemployment rates. She criticises the Government's decision to withdraw support under the job retention scheme, urging them instead to extend it for sectors heavily impacted by local lockdowns due to a lack of effective track and trace systems. The speaker also calls for protection against unfair employment practices like 'fire and rehire' tactics.
Sarah Olney
Lib Dem
Richmond Park
The Liberal Democrats support extending the furlough scheme due to the uncertain future caused by the pandemic. The speaker calls for an effective test, trace and isolate process to keep infection rates down while providing financial support for isolation. She also advocates for a broader economic strategy focusing on green jobs and urgent retraining programmes for workers in affected sectors.
Zarah Sultana
Lab
Coventry South
Sultana criticises the current situation as one of the deepest recessions in OECD and warns about an impending unemployment crisis with predictions of over 1 million jobs lost by Christmas. She urges the Government to extend targeted support schemes and invest in industries for a green new deal, creating more than 1 million green jobs.
Christine Jardine
Lib Dem
Edinburgh West
Jardine highlights that continuing the job retention scheme until June 2021 would cost about £10 billion but emphasises this is dwarfed by long-term costs if support is withdrawn too soon. She argues for a bridge to transition from current conditions to future economic stability, focusing on supporting families and transitioning towards green jobs.
Helen Hayes
Lab
Dulwich and West Norwood
Hayes advocates for extending the furlough scheme targeting sectors particularly hit by coronavirus but unable to return to normal operations. She underlines cultural industries’ importance in her constituency, noting the devastating effects of unemployment on health and wellbeing. Hayes also highlights the exclusion of 2 million self-employed individuals from meaningful support during the pandemic.
Wendy Chamberlain
Lib Dem
North East Fife
Congratulates the hon. Member for securing the debate, highlights the demand for raising constituents' cases, acknowledges the huge amount of correspondence from affected employees since March, pays tribute to her casework team for their effort in directing constituents to support schemes, mentions that nearly 30% of all employees were furloughed across Fife and credits the Treasury for implementing the scheme. She reiterates calls for the extension of the scheme due to its importance to businesses and highlights issues faced by those missing out on furlough due to arbitrary eligibility criteria.
Jim Shannon
DUP
Strangford
Thanks the Minister and Government for support through the furlough scheme, mentions an estimated 4 million unemployed as a reason to ensure employees can return to their roles, discusses tourism in his area and asks the minister to consider a four-day working week. He also brings up the airline and aerospace industry where people are currently on universal credit instead of higher wages when back at work. Finally, he emphasises the importance of ensuring staff are retained on furlough for future jobs.
Expresses sympathy with Mr Deputy Speaker's view about merging debates, acknowledges his hon. Friend's speech on costs versus savings from the job retention scheme, highlights the importance of not ending it early to avoid millions of job losses including in aviation sector, discusses HMRC office closures and reopened centres due to demand, criticises Conservative colleagues for suggesting furlough as a key feature of their economic theory, raises concerns about support for local lockdowns and public health guidance.
Wes Streeting
Lab
Ilford North
Congratulates the hon. Member for North Ayrshire and Arran on securing the debate; highlights consensus across parties regarding job crisis; warns about unemployment figures with 695,000 workers disappearing from payrolls between March and August; criticises Chancellor's decision to roll back the furlough scheme by asking employers to contribute more costs and ending it in six weeks. Emphasises that a total of 9.6 million jobs have been furloughed through the job retention scheme, including 17,500 in his constituency. Suggests an inclusive approach with business representatives and trade unions; calls for sector-by-sector approach to end the scheme.
Jesse Norman
Con
Hereford and South Herefordshire
Congratulated the hon. Member for North Ayrshire and Arran on introducing the motion, thanked Backbench Business Committee for granting the debate, acknowledged the Government's comprehensive response to protect livelihoods, emphasised that furlough scheme has been one of the most effective, highlighted figures showing support across UK regions, argued against extending it indefinitely due to potential irresponsibility in trapping people in subsidised jobs, mentioned continuing government support through packages like bonus and kickstart scheme.
Nigel Evans
Con
Penrith and The Border
Briefly thanked the House for their contributions without providing specific policy details or statistics.
Expressed disappointment that the Minister has not listened to calls for extending the furlough scheme, emphasised ongoing worries about homes, jobs, and future of those affected by the pandemic.
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