Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Covid-19: Economic Recovery

Thursday 2 July 2020 · 3 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 3 Partly answered 0 Not answered 0

Key points

  • Allan Dorans questioned the Secretary of State about British Airways executives bringing aviation into disrepute during the pandemic.
  • The Secretary of State expressed concern for aviation employees and urged British Airways and unions to engage in dialogue.
  • The Secretary of State committed to supporting the bus manufacturing sector by investing 3 billion to produce 4000 new low and zero-carbon buses.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Allan Dorans SNP Ayr, Carrick and Cumnock
Transport
Context

British Airways is threatening to fire and rehire employees on worse terms.

Question

Does the Secretary of State agree that British Airways executives such as Willie Walsh are bringing aviation into disrepute at a time when support for public transport is crucial?

Answer from The Secretary of State Grant Shapps

I am very concerned about the plight of aviation employees not just at British Airways but at other companies. I urge British Airways and the unions to sit down to talk this through, which I know is not happening—the British Airline Pilots Association has done that, but the other unions have not.

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Q2 Gavin Newlands SNP Paisley and Renfrewshire North
Employment Transport
Context

The MP mentions specific job losses at companies like Swissport, Rolls-Royce, Menzies Aviation, and others in his constituency.

Question

These are not national statistics, but the aviation job losses in my constituency alone. Might this sector finally get some good news in the Chancellor's statement next week? If the Secretary of State will not comment on specific aviation companies, will he tell us in general whether he personally thinks it fair that employees can be fired and rehired on slashed terms and conditions?

Answer from The Secretary of State for Transport (Grant Shapps)

As I mentioned in my previous answer, I think the hon. Gentleman is right to be concerned. We need to ensure that there is fair play for employees. Everybody understands that it has been an incredibly tough time. Everyone knows the furlough scheme and many other measures—£330 billion-worth of measures—have been there to support the sector.

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Q3 Gavin Newlands SNP Paisley and Renfrewshire North
Economy Transport Energy
Context

The MP highlights that Alexander Dennis is a leading bus manufacturer facing difficulties because of the pandemic.

Question

Alexander Dennis is a world-leading bus manufacturer, but that sector is also on its knees due to the coronavirus crisis. I welcome the Prime Minister's re-announcement on bus investment, but it needs to be brought forward in full now. I ask the Secretary of State not to rule out investing in low-emission Euro 6 diesel buses to replace some of the older high-polluting models, helping to reduce carbon emissions more quickly and saving thousands of highly skilled jobs across the industry to boot.

Answer from The Secretary of State for Transport (Grant Shapps)

Absolutely. The £3 billion, which is going into new buses, will help us to produce 4,000 additional buses. We want them to be low and zero-carbon electric buses, of course, but also hydrogen buses, so we will certainly be taking that forward.

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