Exiting the European Union

Jack Dromey Excerpts

Monday 10th December 2018 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

I absolutely agree. Sadly, there are Members of this House who appear not to want to deliver on the result of the referendum in 2016 and there are also Members of this House who seem not to want to accept the result of the referendum that took place in Scotland in 2014.

[Jack Dromey (Birmingham, Erdington) (Lab)]

The Government’s mishandling of the negotiations has thrust the country into chaos, with growing uncertainty and deep concern in our automotive sector, including the Jaguar plant in my constituency. We are but three months away from the cliff. Whatever the ultimate way forward agreed by this House is in the next stages, will the Prime Minister today rule out any question of a no-deal Brexit? The jobs of tens of thousands of workers depend on it.

[The Prime Minister]

I have been clear that I believe that the best route forward for the UK is to leave with a good deal with the European Union. That is what we have negotiated, and that is a deal that recognises the importance of the trading relationship to many jobs across this country, including in the automotive industry. But if this House desires not to have no deal, then this House needs to accept a deal, and the best deal on the table is the one that the Government have negotiated.

EU Exit Negotiations

Jack Dromey Excerpts

Thursday 15th November 2018 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

Order. I take this opportunity to inform the House that we have now had 50 questions from Back Benchers, so may I please appeal to colleagues to put short and pointed questions, as exemplified by the right hon. Member for New Forest West (Sir Desmond Swayne)?

[Jack Dromey (Birmingham, Erdington) (Lab)]

No deal would have catastrophic consequences for UK manufacturing; this deal will not pass Parliament. Why does the Prime Minister persist in seeking to achieve the unachievable? With every day of delay, we are one step closer to the cliff. To go over that cliff without an agreement would be the ultimate betrayal of the British national interest.

[The Prime Minister]

When the deal comes to the House, Members will of course have a choice as to whether to accept it. I understand that motor manufacturers have welcomed the deal; they recognise that it is a step forward in ensuring that we can deliver on what matters for them in the future relationship and trading partnership with the EU.

June European Council

Jack Dromey Excerpts

Monday 2nd July 2018 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

In fact, the majority of the time at the Council was spent discussing migration. It is important, because this is an issue that affects the whole of Europe. We have seen movements coming into Europe before the date to which my hon. Friend has referred, and, indeed, after it. We now need to ensure that we are taking some of the steps that the UK encouraged the EU to take at an earlier stage in relation to, for example, further action upstream. That is, I think, the best way in which to ensure that we do not see people in the hands of people-smugglers, making perilous journeys and risking their lives.

[Jack Dromey (Birmingham, Erdington) (Lab)]

The Jaguar plant in Erdington is a jewel in the crown of manufacturing excellence that is the 800,000-strong automotive industry. There is grave and growing concern in the plants and among the companies about the potential of a hard Brexit, which would be catastrophic for a world-leading industry. Would the Prime Minister be prepared to meet Members of Parliament across parties to hear the concerns being expressed about the future of our vital automotive industry?

[The Prime Minister]

I do meet Members of Parliament and hear their concerns on a regular basis, and I am happy to do that. However, I also hear from the automotive industry directly, because I sit round the table with businesses and hear their views on this particular issue. We are delivering on Brexit for the British people, and I want to do so in a way that ensures that we have a good trading relationship with Europe, which is important to sectors such as the automotive industry.

Leaving the EU: Customs

Jack Dromey Excerpts

Wednesday 16th May 2018 Commons Chamber

[Jack Dromey (Birmingham, Erdington) (Lab)]

Erdington is rich in talent but is one of the poorest constituencies in the country. It is blessed, however, by having the Jaguar plant in it. I remember the funereal atmosphere in 2010 when it faced closure, but the factory was turned around, which has transformed the lives of thousands of workers locally, with the workforce doubling in size from 1,400 to nearly 3,000. The foundations were laid in 2008 by a Labour Government with the Automative Council, and we worked with a coalition Government to build on that, with the new engine plant, the skills initiative in the supply chain and the investment in research and development transforming the UK’s automotive sector into the most productive in Europe.

Highly efficient just-in-time manufacturing is essential to maintaining the sector’s international competitiveness, because it relies on the free and frictionless movement of goods. For example, seatbelts, which are now highly technical computer-controlled devices, are made by Bosch in Germany; plastic sealing is made in the Czech Republic; wheels are made in Germany; and brake hoses are made in Spain. The modern British car relies on an interconnected web of European automotive suppliers.

Let us look at the statistics. Eleven hundred trucks a day arrive from the European Union, delivering components worth £35 million. Some 80% of auto imports come from the European Union, while 69% of auto exports are sent to the European Union. Our destiny is inextricably linked with that of the European Union. That is why we so strongly favour continuing customs union membership, for all the reasons we have heard, not least those set out brilliantly by my hon. Friend the Member for Birmingham, Edgbaston (Preet Kaur Gill). It seems that many on the Conservative Benches are absolutely oblivious to the consequences of their actions. They are wide-eyed Brexiteers refusing to hear from the industry and the workers in it, and ploughing ahead with that which would be deeply damaging and harm the British national interest.

We are determined to continue to build on the great success story of Jaguar Land Rover, but there are mounting problems, with 1,000 jobs just gone at Solihull and workers being transferred there from the Jag. Impacts are being felt ever more strongly not just from Brexit but from the problems arising out of the transition from diesel. I say in all honesty to the wide-eyed Brexiteers: listen to the industry and to the workers, and do not be taken forward by a hopelessly divided Cabinet that is taking Britain over the cliff edge to what would be a national disaster.

[Several hon. Members rose—]

Oral Answers to Questions

Jack Dromey Excerpts

Wednesday 28th March 2018 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

I call Jack Dromey, who I trust will speak with his legendary succinctness.

[Jack Dromey (Birmingham, Erdington) (Lab)]

Some 259 years of GKN history will be decided in the next 24 hours—a hostile takeover, not in the British national interest, that the Government have powers to block. May I ask the Prime Minister this? Disturbing evidence has come to light of a hedge fund scam to buy shares in GKN while avoiding paying tax on shares that will determine the future of GKN. Will she agree to condemn this outrageous practice and investigate as a matter of urgency?

[The Prime Minister]

As the hon. Gentleman knows, this is primarily a commercial decision for GKN. My right hon. Friend the Business Secretary is in discussion with the parties on an impartial basis and has sought reassurance from them on their plans. If the hon. Gentleman has evidence that illegal activity has taken place, that should be reported to the proper authorities.

Oral Answers to Questions

Jack Dromey Excerpts

Wednesday 14th March 2018 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

I commend Horsham for holding an apprenticeship fair; it is important that we give young people the opportunity of an apprenticeship. My hon. Friend is absolutely right that we can fund public services only if we have strength in our economy providing the income for us to do so. In the past few weeks, we have seen that manufacturing output has grown for nine consecutive months for the first time since records began in 1968. We have seen the best two quarters of productivity growth since the financial crisis and the lowest year to-date net borrowing since 2008, and employment is near a record high. The Conservatives are delivering a strong economy, new jobs, healthier finances and an economy that really is fit for the future.

[Jack Dromey (Birmingham, Erdington) (Lab)]

Q2. Last week, GKN workers came to Parliament—typically 25 and 30 years’ service, their mums and dads before them working for a British engineering icon that is 259 years old. Sat opposite were the three fabulously wealthy owners of Melrose, determined to stage a hostile takeover of the company, break it up and sell it off. I ask the Prime Minister this. She told Parliament that she would act in the national interest; the next 10 days will decide the future. Will she use the powers that she has to intervene and block this hostile takeover in the British national interest?

[The Prime Minister]

As the hon. Gentleman knows, the Business Secretary has been speaking to both companies on an impartial basis. We will always act in the UK’s national interest; actually, it is under this Government that we have seen the changes introduced to the takeover code to provide greater transparency and give target firms more time to respond. There is a narrow range of scenarios where Ministers can intervene on mergers on public interest grounds, but we will always ensure that we act in the national interest.

Oral Answers to Questions

Jack Dromey Excerpts

Wednesday 7th February 2018 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

I was very pleased that when I was in China last week we were able to work with the Chinese Government towards the opening up of the Chinese market, particularly to beef products and dairy products, which are two key issues for the United Kingdom. I am also pleased to say that the chief executive of the Scotch Whisky Association was on the business delegation with me, and was doing everything that she does, most ably, to promote the interests of Scotch whisky. Of course, the answer to my hon. Friend’s question is that we are making sure that we can have an independent trade policy, developing trade deals around the rest of the world, which means that good Scottish products, and indeed good products from the rest of the UK, can be sold around the world.

[Jack Dromey (Birmingham, Erdington) (Lab)]

Centuries- old GKN, a world-class company and Britain’s third-biggest engineering company, is facing a hostile takeover by Melrose, leading to break-up, sell-off, closures and redundancies. That would make a mockery of industrial strategy. The Government have the power to intervene because of the defence work carried out by GKN. Will the Prime Minister act in the national interest and block this unwanted takeover?

[The Prime Minister]

Of course, the Business Department will be looking closely at, and has been following closely, the issue that the hon. Gentleman has raised. I can assure him that I, and the Government as a whole, will always act in the UK national interest.

Carillion and Public Sector Outsourcing

Jack Dromey Excerpts

Wednesday 24th January 2018 Commons Chamber

[Jack Dromey (Birmingham, Erdington) (Lab)]

It is very good to see you back, Mr Deputy Speaker.

The ideological zeal of the Conservative party has not dimmed since the days of Mrs Thatcher. The mantra then and now is one of “public bad, private good”. I remember then leading a delegation to see the good Lord Heseltine, the then Secretary of State for Defence, to convince him that we had a public sector alternative to privatisation of the royal naval dockyards. When we asked him, “Why then privatise?” he tossed his golden mane over his shoulder and said, “Because I am a Tory.” That says it all about the enduring ideological assumption made by the Conservative party. To this day, the heir to Mrs Thatcher refuses to listen to the reasonable case put by the Opposition for taking back into public ownership failing utilities that are letting the public down.

I have always argued that the public interest should come first, but why should workers come a sorry second? Let us look at the history of what has happened, at outsourcing and at what is threatened at the next stages. On history, we have had 10 years in which the Tories refused to apply TUPE to 6 million public servants, with those public servants paying a catastrophic price as a consequence. Ultimately, the old T&G won. We took the case to the European Court of Justice to force the Government to extend TUPE to cover the public sector. Now, once again, what we thought we had won is threatened by Brexit. We have heard successive Ministers, led by the Foreign Secretary, talking about abolishing red tape. Is guaranteeing workers’ rights on transfer red tape? Nonsense. The Government have refused to guarantee in British law—statute law—that workers will be protected on transfer.

On Carillion, it was a monumental failure by Government and of governance. It is a symbol of the utter irresponsibility and incompetence of the Government, driven by that ideological zeal with catastrophic consequences. Last Tuesday, at the Apprenticeship Centre in my constituency, apprentices were sent home weeping. One said, “What am I going to tell my mum? What do I do now?” Workers were in despair. What we were seeing were the catastrophic consequences of a company that had received three profit warnings, that was still paying dividends and that was not adequately investing in the pension deficit. It is not true that pensions are fully protected—notwithstanding the welcome steps taken by a Labour Government with the Pension Protection Fund. All workers, to a greater or lesser extent, will lose on their pensions.

Finally, when we are in government, the Labour party will act to end that ideological assumption of “public bad, private good”. We will use public spending power in the best interests of the public, in the best interests of workers and in the best interests of small and medium-sized enterprises. The difference between our two parties could not be greater. We will stand up for the public interest.

European Council

Jack Dromey Excerpts

Monday 18th December 2017 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

The progress report that was agreed between the United Kingdom and the EU was clear about the significance not just of north-south trade but of maintaining east-west trade. I and the Government are very clear about the need to maintain not just the constitutional integrity of the United Kingdom, but the economic integrity of the United Kingdom.

[Jack Dromey (Birmingham, Erdington) (Lab)]

The mask slipped at the weekend, when the Foreign Secretary let slip that changes might be made for the worse to British workers’ rights on working time, even though they are already working the longest hours in Europe. The Prime Minister has today refused to give a cast-iron guarantee that there will be no changes for the worse. Does that not demonstrate that we can never, ever trust the Tories with workers’ rights?

[The Prime Minister]

I will tell the hon. Gentleman who cannot be trusted with workers’ rights—a Labour party that voted against bringing workers’ rights into UK law.

UK Plans for Leaving the EU

Jack Dromey Excerpts

Monday 9th October 2017 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

We are very clear on that. We have continued to hold talks with the Gibraltar Government—as, indeed, we have with others—to make sure that they are fully aware of the negotiations as they go along. We are very clear about Gibraltar’s position. My hon. Friend makes an important point about the Labour party and the rest of the Opposition: they claim that they want to respect the referendum vote, yet here they are trying to suggest we should revoke article 50. That is the exact opposite of what the British people wanted.

[Jack Dromey (Birmingham, Erdington) (Lab)]

As a lifelong negotiator who has stood up for workers all my life against the actions of Conservative Governments, I say to the hon. Member for Lichfield (Michael Fabricant) that the jewel in the crown of British manufacturing is the automotive sector. It is a world-class success story that has transformed the lives of hundreds of thousands of workers, and more than half our cars are sold into the EU. Will the Prime Minister provide more detail on the implementation period? The industry is facing mounting problems, particularly given the importance of regulatory alignment to the sector and the integrated nature of European supply chains. If the Government get this negotiation wrong, they will do grave damage to the automotive sector and thousands of workers will pay the price with their jobs.