Oral Answers to Questions Debate

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Department: HM Treasury

Oral Answers to Questions

Alun Cairns Excerpts
Tuesday 1st November 2011

(12 years, 6 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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George Osborne Portrait Mr Osborne
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In his pitch for a job, the hon. Gentleman failed to mention that youth unemployment rose by more than 40% under the Labour Government. There is complete amnesia about the fact that 16 months ago they left this country with high unemployment, a high budget deficit, the deepest recession this country has seen in the last 100 years, and the biggest banking crisis in our history.

Alun Cairns Portrait Alun Cairns (Vale of Glamorgan) (Con)
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T7. Some of the most needy children in the Vale of Glamorgan and across the UK will benefit from today onwards from the Government’s junior ISA. That presents an opportunity to return to a culture of savings among families. What plans have the Government to develop that further?

George Osborne Portrait Mr Osborne
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We have indeed announced today the launch of the junior ISA, which will enable many millions of parents to save for their children up to £3,600 a year tax free. It should help more than 6 million children who will be eligible for it immediately and many more as they are born and grow up. It is all about trying to foster a savings culture after the age of irresponsibility and the culture of debt that we saw over the past decade.