Foreign Direct Investment 2016-17

James Gray Excerpts

Tuesday 12th September 2017 Westminster Hall

[Mr Barry Sheerman (Huddersfield) (Lab/Co-op)]

I congratulate the hon. Gentleman on securing this debate. Even though we are all a little tired after last night, many of us have turned up here today because this is an important subject.

I urge the hon. Gentleman not to be too optimistic. During my career in Parliament, I have spent a long time as chair of the all-party group on manufacturing and I have tried to encourage investment in this country. At the moment, proposals from Japan, China and America are very tentative. They think that, as we go through the Brexit process, some sensible solutions will be reached regarding our access to the European market, but nothing is definite yet. There are lots of things hanging. I have just come back from New York, and what I find is that nobody in financial services in New York will accept or even apply for a job in London at the moment—

[James Gray (in the Chair)]

Order. The hon. Gentleman is a very experienced Member and he knows very well that that intervention was too long. The previous intervention was from a new Member, the hon. Member for Stirling (Stephen Kerr), and he can be excused both for its being rather lengthy and for reading it, which is not something one would normally expect. I remind Members that interventions should be short, and they should be direct questions, not mini-speeches.

[Michael Tomlinson]

Thank you for that reminder, Mr Gray. I am grateful to the hon. Member for Huddersfield (Mr Sheerman) for his intervention. Last night was a late night and we can anticipate that tonight will be a late finish as well, but this is an important debate and I am very grateful that he is here in the Chamber this morning.

The hon. Gentleman is right—I am a glass-half-full, optimistic kind of person. However, we must not take a rose-tinted view, and I will say later that we should anticipate where there will be bumps in the road ahead. It is right that we do that, but where FDI is still happening in this country—even though the doomsayers said that it would not happen—that is a good early sign. Nevertheless, he is right that we have to look out for bumps ahead, and I will talk about the south-west region in particular.

Amazon is creating 450 new high-tech jobs in the UK, in addition to the 5,000 Amazon jobs that are already here. That is a real demonstration that Amazon and other companies believe that this is a good country in which to do business. I do not know whether you are on Snapchat yourself, Mr Gray—

[James Gray (in the Chair)]

Of course.

[Michael Tomlinson]

If you are, perhaps we should all get on to Snapchat. It has opened its new global hub right here in London, which again shows that it believes in this country in a post-Brexit world. There may well be bumps ahead, but let us look at the facts and the evidence of what has happened so far, while also being cautious about the future.

Having looked at the general picture, let me give some specific details of FDI. The latest report on inward investment results from the Department for International Trade, which is from 2016-17, showed that there were more than 2,260 inward investment projects in the UK. The good news is that that is up by 2% on the previous year and the investments secured over 75,000 new jobs, which is a huge number. However, there is one reason to be cautious, on which I specifically challenge the Minister. We are told that the jobs figure is down by 9% from 2015-16, so I invite him to explain why that is. Obviously the number of projects being invested in is still rising, but why are the jobs figures not quite as high as before? Of course I welcome the jobs that are being created and retained; in the south-west region alone, there have been nearly 3,500 new jobs and I very much welcome them.

Let me turn to the specific regional figures. As one would expect, London and the south-east is the region of the UK that attracts the most FDI. My hon. Friend the Member for Stirling (Stephen Kerr) mentioned Scotland, which receives the next largest amount of FDI. Again, that shows the strength of the whole United Kingdom, which is good for our United Kingdom. However, I challenge the Minister specifically about the south-west, my own region—other speakers will no doubt champion their own region. Although I welcome the 3,500 new jobs in the south-west, I invite the Minister to ensure that there is sufficient FDI in the regions outside London and the south-east.

--- Later in debate ---

[Michael Tomlinson]

I thank all hon. Members who took part in the debate. The hon. Member for Strangford (Jim Shannon) talked about his optimism and about strength and growth in Northern Ireland. My hon. Friend the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Rishi Sunak) talked about his business background and what a good place this country is to do business in. He also set out some challenges and constructive suggestions as to how we can improve our productivity and attractiveness.

We heard some notes of caution from the hon. Members for Livingston (Hannah Bardell) and for Sefton Central (Bill Esterson), who both cited EY’s attractiveness survey. The hon. Gentleman did accept that it was a mixed picture but that there was some positivity there. I urge him to look to that positivity: the UK remains hugely successful in attracting FDI and has clear potential and opportunities to sustain that success in a post-Brexit world.

I am grateful to the Minister for his words, particularly in relation to my region, the south-west. My constituents will be reassured. My remaining challenge to him and his Department is to ensure that they look out for all the regions—as he said he would in his speech—and continue to do that as we go forward, forging new trade deals.

Question put and agreed to.

Resolved,

That this House has considered foreign direct investment into the UK in 2016-17.

[James Gray (in the Chair)]

Order. That very useful debate having concluded, and with the Minister and Member responsible for the next debate being in the Chamber, it may be convenient to continue without any gap.