Fairness and Inequality

Debate between Angus Brendan MacNeil and Gemma Doyle

Tuesday 11th February 2014 Commons Chamber

[Mr MacNeil]

I hear what the hon. Lady says. I am tempted to go down the route of the argument about the taxation of land and labour. I hope the hon. Member for North East Somerset agrees that it has many merits and that he will move a little closer to me on the left wing as a result.

[Gemma Doyle (West Dunbartonshire) (Lab/Co-op)]

On taxation, does the hon. Gentleman agree that the 50p tax rate should be brought back, and would he support it in a separate Scotland?

[Mr MacNeil]

I have two points to make in response to that. First, when the 50p tax rate was abolished, Members from Plaid Cymru, the Scottish National party and a number of other minority parties—as they are termed in this place, even though we, of course, are the only majority Government on these islands—went through the Lobby to oppose the cut. If memory serves me right, Labour Members sat on their hands and did not do so.

Secondly, I would support the return of the 50p rate on the basis of need and argument. I understand that the UK Labour party is suggesting an increase to 50p for a short fixed term, probably because of the level of the UK deficit, but the Scottish deficit is at a different level. Is the increase necessary in the UK because of economic circumstances—that is one argument—or is the hon. Lady saying that a 50p rate is Labour policy for ever?

[Gemma Doyle]

I am happy to clarify that the question was whether the hon. Gentleman supports the 50p tax rate.

[Mr MacNeil]

We voted against its abolition. It would not have gone—we would have the 50p tax rate right now—if the hon. Lady and many others had joined us in the Lobby. The question is: why did she and her colleagues not go through the Lobby to vote against the cut? Where were Labour Members that night? There was no sign of them. Would anybody from the Labour party care to tell me why they did not vote against the cut to the 50p tax rate? I would be very pleased to hear why not. Will one of the about 20 Members on the Labour Benches please stand and explain why Labour did not oppose the cut to the 50p tax rate? Going once, going twice, gone: Labour has refused to explain.

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[Mr MacNeil]

My hon. Friend puts it very well: we are caring for those in need. Our hearts should go out to those needing help, and we should not be thought of as part of a something-for-nothing society.

[Gemma Doyle]

Will the hon. Gentleman tell us how much less money there would be to spend on public services in Scotland if his party gets its way and cuts tax for big business?

[Mr MacNeil]

If my party gets its way, there will be more money for services in Scotland, because our fiscal position is far better than the UK’s and our deficit per capita is lower. If we become independent, we can do a lot more to help. I hope that the hon. Lady does not hold the position of the hon. Member for Lanark and Hamilton East (Mr Hood). Last Thursday, he told us:

“If the Scottish people are going to be better off economically and so on, I would still be against breaking away from the Union.”—[Official Report, 6 February 2014; Vol. 575, c. 467.]

If by becoming independent we can fight poverty, will the hon. Lady support independence?

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[Mr MacNeil]

I must tell the hon. Lady that, to be absolutely honest, I have not considered that question politically. [Interruption.] Labour Members are mocking, but they would, because they probably have no response. If they have one, they are more than welcome to intervene. If the hon. Member for Ochil and South Perthshire (Gordon Banks) wants to limit the pay of top footballers, he can jump up to the Dispatch Box and tell us how. The hon. Member for Solihull (Lorely Burt) addresses a point that we should look at and think about in our society, since it is one of the jarring unfairnesses and inequalities. People working together shoulder to shoulder with such massive disparities sums up what is happening in our society.

In the report “Working for Poverty”, Dr John Sentamu’s foreword starts with a nugget from the CBI director-general John Cridland, who said that there are

“still far too many people stuck in minimum wage jobs without routes to progression…and that’s a serious challenge that business and government must address.”

I again praise the Archbishop of York for saying elsewhere in his report that business itself has to step up to the plate and make sure that people are getting a fair day’s pay for a fair day’s work, but praise is due to John Cridland also, for his remarks at the outset of the report.

Making work pay is important—very important. The UK taxpayer is paying a staggering £3 billion to £6 billion to cover the costs of inadequate pay, which affects a colossal 5.24 million workers—an increase of 400,000 in the past 12 months alone. That is welfare on a sadly grand scale, for which we should not be asking the taxpayer to foot the bill.

The report notes that the prices of everyday items have risen faster than prices of other goods. Food costs 44% more than in 2005 and energy costs have more than doubled. On the bright side, it notes that vehicle costs have remained stable and the cost of audiovisual equipment has halved. In more serious terms, the report notes that children of parents on low pay are less likely to achieve in school compared with their peers at every stage of their childhood education. A living wage employee gets nearly double the amount of family time in a typical working week as someone on the national minimum wage—a subject I shall return to later in my speech.

The report lays out more correctly the problem in the gains of productivity and their distribution, noting that the arrangements are such that economic growth alone will not necessarily solve Britain’s low pay crisis. Unlike the hon. Member for Bedford (Richard Fuller), I think the Government have a role to play; it is not just a matter for well-meaning individuals. Paul Krugman and Joe Stiglitz observe that low pay takes demand out of the economy, as the people circulating money in the economy are those who are on low pay. There is even an argument that higher unemployment benefit is an economic multiplier, in that the money that goes into recipients’ pockets circulates more quickly.

[Gemma Doyle]

The hon. Gentleman is being generous. He mentions the opinions of Professor Joseph Stiglitz. Is he aware of another of Professor Stiglitz’s comments:

“Some of you have been told that lowering tax rates on corporations will lead to more investment. The fact is that’s not true. It is just a gift to the corporations increasing inequality in our society.”?

Will he reconsider his position on corporation tax?

Scotland’s Place in the UK

Debate between Angus Brendan MacNeil and Gemma Doyle

Thursday 6th February 2014 Commons Chamber

[Gemma Doyle (West Dunbartonshire) (Lab/Co-op)]

It is a pleasure to be able to contribute to this debate. The first priority of any responsible Government is, of course, the security of their people and I want to say a few words about that.

As part of the UK, Scots have a high level of security in a very dangerous world. Service personnel from Scotland, England, Wales and Northern Ireland work together in our armed forces to keep us safe at home and to tackle threats around the world. People like the security that the UK armed forces provide, and that is reflected in some of the findings of the recent Scottish social attitudes survey. If Scotland became independent, only 27% believe she should have her own army, navy and air force, while 67% believe we should still combine our armed forces with the rest of the UK. There are very few issues in the survey on which there is such overwhelming majority support for one option over another. Overwhelming support is also given to the idea of keeping the pound, whatever happens. The views of Scots on the issue of the nuclear deterrent are not as clear cut as they are on what should happen to our armed forces.

As part of the UK, we are also a part of NATO. Our membership is vital and means that we work with other countries and benefit from full spectrum defence capabilities; that we are not out on our own; and that we have influence in the world. The SNP, having dragged its members to reverse their long-standing opposition to NATO membership, is still in a muddle on the issue. It says that it would want to join NATO only if it were given a guarantee that no nuclear submarines would pass through Scotland’s waters. However, the White Paper also states that it would operate a “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy. Both positions cannot be true: either the SNP would apply to join NATO on the basis of its condition, or it would drop that condition and be happy to join and operate a “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy. Therefore, if we become independent, the SNP’s position on our membership of NATO, and the basis on which it would like us to join, is entirely unclear. Of course, there is no guarantee that we would be allowed to join.

The White Paper’s proposed defence budget is £2.5 billion a year, which is just 7% of the current total UK defence budget, every penny of which is spent on protecting Scottish families and others throughout the UK. The White Paper also includes an annual defence budget, but it does not mention any start-up costs or make a single procurement pledge.

The UK’s defence structure cannot be easily disaggregated. Assets and troops based throughout the UK and the rest of the world are for the defence and security of everyone who lives here. Scotland receives the full benefits of the protection and security afforded to the rest of the UK.

[Mr MacNeil]

Will the hon. Lady give way?

[Gemma Doyle]

I will not, I am afraid: I do not have much time.

We pool our resources and work together to keep the people of the UK safe. Why would we want to give that up?

A yellow thread of assumption runs through the White Paper. It is assumed that the remainder of the UK would cheerfully hand over whatever equipment an independent Scotland asked for, but what would an independent Scotland do if the remainder of the UK said, “I think we’ll keep our frigates and Typhoons”? Such equipment cannot be bought off the shelf, unless it is bought second hand. Perhaps that is the back-up plan.

UK defence sustains thousands of jobs—both on the front line and in industry—in Scotland. As has been said, our shipyards get special preference when it comes to the awarding of contracts. The UK does not build complex warships in other countries. The GMB convenor in Scotstoun has described the SNP’s defence plans as a “complete fantasy” that would lead to “yard closures”. We pool our resources and we share the risk, and our defence is much better within the UK.

Unemployment in Scotland

Debate between Angus Brendan MacNeil and Gemma Doyle

Wednesday 5th December 2012 Westminster Hall

[Mr Angus Brendan MacNeil (Na h-Eileanan an Iar) (SNP)]

Will the hon. Lady give way?

[Gemma Doyle]

As the hon. Gentleman has just come into the Chamber, I will make a wee bit of progress.

The UK Government did have a plan to help people back into jobs, but the Work programme is not working. In the great fanfare around its launch, we were promised a revolution in getting people back to work that would transform the way people were supported, reducing the benefits bill and getting people into jobs, while ensuring value for money for the taxpayer. What a joke—instead it has been a comprehensive failure. The 3.8% success rate in Scotland—I am looking at the success rate over 14 months—falls some way behind the Government’s minimum target. The success rate in West Dunbartonshire is 1.7%, which means that less than two of every 100 people on the programme get a job. That is a shocking statistic.

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[Gemma Doyle]

My hon. Friend makes a useful point, and we have seen exactly those problems in my constituency as well.

We have been told that things will get better, but we have heard that one before, and we are already £400 million into this failing project. People do not want to hear that things will get better eventually. They want and need proper help and support now. The truth is that the Government scrapped a successful job creation scheme. Labour’s future jobs fund had real success in helping people off benefits and back into the workplace. It created 10,000 jobs in Scotland and was a proven success, but only weeks after the general election, one of the first things that the Government did was scrap it. Why was it scrapped? Just because the Labour party had set it up—how spiteful.

The report by the Centre for Economic and Social Inclusion on the future jobs fund clearly set out the scheme’s benefits: raising aspirations for work; moving people off long-term benefits; and helping people into jobs. Some 101,000 Scottish young people are out of work and the Government should be investing in programmes that work, not pumping money into programmes that do not.

It was around this time last year that plans for the Youth Contract were first announced. Last month I asked the Employment Minister, the hon. Member for Fareham (Mr Hoban), if the rumours are true that millions of pounds are sitting unallocated and helping no one because the Government cannot get employers on board with the Youth Contract. It is worth bearing in mind that almost 1,000 young people are out of work in West Dunbartonshire. What was the Minister’s response to me? He dismissed my concern and told me that 20 young people in my constituency have had work experience through the Youth Contract. That was 20 out of 1,000, and it was work experience, not a job. The only place that those young people can see employment is in the Minister’s job title, and he should hang his head in shame.

However, it does not matter how many schemes and programmes there are; if there are no jobs for people to go into, it does not make a blind bit of difference. In recent months, as many as 36 people have been chasing every vacancy in West Dunbartonshire. In my constituency, as in many others, the challenge is not getting people ready for work; it is making sure that there are jobs for them to go into. That is why one of the first things that the newly elected Labour council in West Dunbartonshire did earlier this year was to launch an ambitious programme to create 1,000 new jobs and apprenticeships in our area. However, we also need a larger, more robust private sector in West Dunbartonshire. Public service has always been valued in Scotland. We do not subscribe to the Tories’ fixation on “Public, bad; private, good.”, nor do we accept their attempts to divide public and private sector workers by placing a higher value on one group.

[Mr MacNeil]

The hon. Lady is right that there are plenty of complaints about the Conservative Government in Westminster, but will she put her ambitions in London aside and do what is needed, as she said earlier—and so that the Scottish Government would be less hamstrung by Westminster—and support moves to give more powers to Scotland, and also crucially, support the Scottish National party’s call for funding support for shovel-ready projects?

[Gemma Doyle]

If the hon. Gentleman bears with me, he will hear that I do not believe that the Scottish Government are using the levers that they already have. If he is patient, I will come on to those issues. West Dunbartonshire was named as the area of the UK least able to weather the Government’s cuts, partly because of our high reliance on public sector jobs. When 40 people are chasing every vacancy in my constituency, as there have been at times during the past two and a half years, we have a responsibility to do everything possible to grow the existing businesses and to attract new ones.

In Aggreko and Polaroid, we have world-leading companies in West Dunbartonshire. We distil and bottle some of the finest whiskies in the world. We have diverse manufacturing companies. Our tourism product is second to none. The Clyde shipyards are a stone’s throw away, and the Clyde naval base is on our doorstop. All of that is sandwiched between the fabulous city of Glasgow and the beautiful Loch Lomond. West Dunbartonshire is a great place to do business, and there are real opportunities to be had, but we need the Government to change course.

There is an alternative to the Government’s cuts agenda. There has to be, because we must jump-start growth, get the economy moving again and create jobs. The real jobs guarantee, which we have proposed and which would be funded by a tax on bankers’ bonuses, would guarantee a job to 110,000 young people. We also want investment in infrastructure projects, a cut in VAT, a one-year national insurance tax break for every small firm that takes on extra workers, a one-year cut in VAT to 5% on home improvements and a properly resourced British investment bank to boost lending to small and medium-sized enterprises.

No one claimed that the path to economic recovery was going to be easy after the collapse, but the Government know and I am sure that the Minister knows that at the time of the 2010 general election, our economy was recovering. Growth was up, and unemployment was going down. We were on the right track, and the worst of it should have been over. From 1997 to 2008, unemployment in West Dunbartonshire more than halved. Yes, the financial crisis meant that it started to go back up, but the action that the previous Labour Government were taking pushed it back into a downward trend.

That is where we were at the start of 2010, but when the current Government took over, they took the wrong path. Their austerity measures have sent our economy and the job prospects of thousands of Scots spiralling downwards. We have seen a double-dip recession and borrowing go up. Is it any wonder that people are wondering whether there is even still a plan to stick to or whether the Government are making it all up on the hoof, as they go along?

We can all hope that the Chancellor will change course later today, but I sincerely doubt that any of us should hold our breath on that. I want to know what the Scotland Office will do about it. It beggars belief that no Scotland Office Minister takes part in any of the key Cabinet Committees on the economy or on welfare reform. The Minister has a duty to ensure that he is at the table and to force his way into those discussions, because Scots expect him to be there and to be making our case.

In Scotland, we thought that we would be protected from the worst of the Tories’ cuts, because one of the Labour Government’s greatest achievements was to establish the Scottish Parliament. It should have protected us from the worst excesses of a Conservative Government, but instead, 15 years on, we have a Scottish Government plagued by inaction, standing by and letting the Tories do their worst.

[Mr MacNeil]

Will the hon. Lady give way?

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[Gemma Doyle]

I think that I shall make a bit of progress.

The truth is that for the past three months, unemployment in Scotland has continued to rise, while it has begun to fall, albeit very slowly and with no guarantees, across the rest of the UK. Unemployment rates in Scotland are up compared with the UK average. I want to know what the Scottish Government will do about that. Instead of using the powers that they have, the nationalist Government are sticking their heads in the sand, kidding themselves that it is all someone else’s fault and leaving the people of Scotland to suffer under the Tories once again.

[Mr MacNeil]

Would the hon. Lady like to tell us whether the former Labour Government introduced any cuts at all?

[Gemma Doyle]

I think that the hon. Gentleman will find that we are discussing unemployment in Scotland. I am setting out very clearly what the Scottish Government whom he supports are failing to do. We need to get the economy back on track. There is no black-and-white answer, but the Scottish Government are failing desperately the people of Scotland. If more of the hon. Gentleman’s colleagues were interested, perhaps they would have turned up this morning.

The hon. Gentleman does not have to listen just to me. The Scottish Chambers of Commerce is also very concerned and has called on the Scottish Government to use the levers at their disposal to stimulate business growth, because they clearly are not doing so at the moment.

Fuel Prices and the Cost of Living

Debate between Angus Brendan MacNeil and Gemma Doyle

Wednesday 16th March 2011 Commons Chamber

[Mr MacNeil]

As the hon. Gentleman knows, and as I have demonstrated in the past, I have great sympathy for the Isle of Wight and indeed for the Cornish Isles of Scilly, so I hope that this will extend to them as well.

May I suggest that the Government put in place a maximum percentage that can be taken at the pumps in taxation, or at the very least a desired percentage to be taken in taxation, just as the inflation rate seems to be a desired rate and a target for the country? I say that because in the UK 62% of the price of petrol is duty, which is the highest level in Europe—the lowest level in Europe is 46%. May I also ask the Government to examine the fuel distribution network, because many people have long had deep concerns about profiteering between refineries and retailers in what seems to be a very opaque business model? We have to ensure that any gains we make in the—so far promised—rural fuel derogation are felt at island pumps and are not snaffled away elsewhere.

We know what fuel tax is doing to people’s pockets on a daily basis up and down the land: it is affecting the poorest more, as this is a highly regressive tax. In areas such as mine, where wages are below the national average, the cost of living is higher and fuel poverty is high—my constituency has the highest in the land—the regressive nature of this tax is really felt. The tax pulls money out of the economy from families, businesses and individuals, and from local authority budgets and health board budgets. Clearly we need help and I ask the Government to provide it in tackling fuel tax and in taking the foot of high fuel tax off the neck of the islands’ economy.

When I last spoke in the House on this matter, on 7 February, I said—I have checked the Hansard record—that fuel was £1.44 a litre. My office in Stornoway tells me that it is now £1.48 a litre, and I shudder to think what it might be the next time I speak on this issue in the House, because the cost seems to be going in one direction. Before the staff at Benbecula airport correct me, yet again, on the price, I point out that the price in Uist will inevitably be higher. I understand that the price in Uist and Benbecula is more than £1.50 a litre. Consistently, throughout the length of my constituency, we are paying the highest fuel tax in the UK. The simple re-announcements of the intention to have a rural fuel derogation without any change coming at the island pumps are greeted with nausea by my constituents, who are tired of hearing pious words and are instead looking for pious actions.

[Gemma Doyle (West Dunbartonshire) (Lab/Co-op)]

Can the hon. Gentleman explain to my constituents why his party is interested in giving help only to Scots in rural areas and not to people in my constituency?

[Mr MacNeil]

I will indeed. I imagine that in West Dunbartonshire the price of fuel is 15p to 20p a litre lower. How I wish we could enjoy the prices of West Dunbartonshire. I also wish that the hon. Lady could express some sympathy for the voters, constituents and people of the Western Isles who have suffered higher fuel prices than many other areas in the UK as a result of the policies of successive Governments.

[Gemma Doyle]

For the purposes of clarification, let me assure the hon. Gentleman that fuel in West Dunbartonshire is currently £1.36 a litre for unleaded and £1.43 for diesel—not far behind the prices he quoted for his area.

[Mr MacNeil]

I have every sympathy for the people of West Dunbartonshire—those are high prices—but with our prices of £1.48 and £1.50 a litre, I wish that we could enjoy prices such as £1.36 a litre. If I went back to the Outer Hebrides tomorrow and announced a price of £1.36, I would be regarded as some sort of hero, but unfortunately I cannot do that. I have sympathy with the hon. Lady but I am afraid that she must reciprocate and understand the problems that come when fuel poverty is higher, the cost of living is higher and wages are lower. The pilot project in the Outer Hebrides and other islands in Scotland is the right way to go. If it is a success, I hope we can extend it. I find the lack of sympathy from Labour Members about the problems in the Outer Hebrides somewhat distressing.

Scotland Bill

Debate between Angus Brendan MacNeil and Gemma Doyle

Thursday 27th January 2011 Commons Chamber

[Gemma Doyle]

That is very worrying. Before the general election last year, Alex Salmond in fact said that he would prop up a Tory Government if necessary, and as such I agree with my hon. Friend. When I talk to people in my constituency in West Dunbartonshire—

[Mr MacNeil]

Will the hon. Lady give way?

[Gemma Doyle]

Not at the moment.

People in my constituency tell me that their biggest concerns are about jobs. There are reports that there could be 1,700 local redundancies—[Interruption.] That illustrates the difference between Labour and SNP Members. I am talking about jobs in my constituency and not about independence, which is why I am not giving way at the moment. My constituents are concerned that there could be 1,700 local redundancies in my constituency alone as a result of the actions of this Tory-led Government. They are concerned about the impact of the VAT increase, spiralling fuel price increases, and the effects of cuts in tax credits and child benefits on their families. They fear the impact on local hospitals and their children’s schools of the SNP’s cuts in teachers and NHS staff.

[Mr MacNeil]

Would the hon. Lady prefer that powers over aspects of Scottish life that are important for keeping jobs in her constituency and my constituency were controlled in the Scottish Parliament, or would she prefer them to be controlled by the Tory-Liberal Government here in London? Does she prefer the Scottish Parliament or the Tory-Liberal Government?

[Gemma Doyle]

At the moment, I am afraid that I am not too keen on either, but we must work in both Parliaments.

People in my constituency do not share the SNP’s obsession with the constitution, which is another reason why Scots do not listen to the SNP anymore. Who can blame them, given its record in government? Before the Scottish election in 2007, the SNP promised the earth to the people of Scotland, but it has broken promise after promise. It broke promises on schools and promises to scrap the council tax. Its promise to write off student debt and many others were also broken.

People are furious that the SNP Government are doing the Tories’ job for them in Scotland. They are repeating the mistakes of the Thatcher years by cutting key economic budgets, and by cutting teachers and NHS staff by thousands.

[Mr MacNeil]

Will the hon. Lady give way?

[Gemma Doyle]

I have already given way to the hon. Gentleman, so may I make some progress please?

One reason why Scots voted for devolution in ’97 was that they lived through a Tory Government in the ’80s who did not care about us, and who indeed used Scotland as a testing ground for their most reviled policy—the hated poll tax. The establishment of the Scottish Parliament should mean that we in Scotland have some defence against the worst excesses of any Tory Government, but that will not happen now that we have an SNP Government in Scotland.

People in my constituency have been hit by an SNP double whammy. An SNP-run council is mounting an attack on the most vulnerable by imposing unfair charges on the elderly and disabled, and an SNP Government are making cuts to local services that are deeper in my area than across the rest of Scotland. The figures bear that out. The SNP in government has seriously failed the people of Scotland and Scots continue to reject separation in massive numbers. As the SNP continues to pursue its obsession with separation, it becomes more and more out of touch by the day. That was highlighted by the hon. Member for Perth and North Perthshire (Pete Wishart) when he spent his time failing to speak to his amendment, but talking about Antarctica and caravans.