Oral Answers to Questions Debate

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Department: Department for Education

Oral Answers to Questions

Alison Seabeck Excerpts
Thursday 6th September 2012

(11 years, 8 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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Vince Cable Portrait Vince Cable
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Within the last few months I have been to Sheffield to open a new centre developing frontier research on materials. There is in addition work on aerodynamics, which we developed through a new grant under the leadership programme that we have in relation to the aerospace sector. Aerospace is an excellent example of how Government and industry can work together to create growth and world-leading industries.

Alison Seabeck Portrait Alison Seabeck (Plymouth, Moor View) (Lab)
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I welcome the new team, who will be very aware that the Government’s stated policy is to improve UK growth through exports. Will they therefore explain why there is only one UK delegate to the NATO delegation supporting British defence industry and exports to that particular market? The US have got 40, the French and Germans have several—can we please have a bit of joined-up government and will he talk to his colleagues in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office?

Vince Cable Portrait Vince Cable
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I can explain what happened at that conference. My ministerial colleagues and I spend a great deal of time promoting defence exports, which are one of the main success stories in the rapid growth of our exports and one of the main features of the rebalancing that is taking place.