Conservative response to Sir Keir Starmer’s speech at the TUC

Responding, Amanda Milling MP, Co-Chairman of the Conservative Party, said:

“Rather than stoking people’s fears about their future, Sir Keir should put politics aside and start supporting the Government.

“We already have a comprehensive national Plan for Jobs – to protect jobs, support people into jobs, and create new jobs – a plan which he opposed. Through the furlough scheme and business grants, we have protected incomes and livelihoods throughout the pandemic.

“While he criticizes from the sidelines, this Government is delivering for the people of this country as we build back better from coronavirus.”

ENDS

Notes to editors

• Sir Keir Starmer is calling for things the Government has already done. ‘At this moment of national crisis we should take inspiration from our past. Be willing to put party differences aside and work together in the interest of the country. Imagine how powerful it would be if we could form a genuine national plan to protect jobs, create new ones and investing in skills and training? I’m making an open offer to the Prime Minister: work with us to keep millions of people in work. Work with the trade unions and work with businesses. Do everything possible to protect jobs and to deliver for working people’ (Labour Press, 14 September 2020, link).

We are putting jobs at the forefront of our economic recovery – our Plan for Jobs is worth up to £30 billion and includes:

• Protecting jobs by:

• Our Job Retention Bonus of £1,000 for employers who bring back furloughed employees and keep them on until January.
• Supporting hard hit sectors through the Eat Out to Help Out Scheme and cutting the rate of VAT for hospitality, accommodation and attractions to 5%.

• Supporting jobs through:

• Our £2 billion Kickstart scheme, creating hundreds of thousands of new, fully subsidised jobs for young people – recognising they are particularly at risk.
• £1.5 billion investment in scaling up employment support schemes, such as training and apprenticeships.

• Creating jobs by:

• Stimulating the housing market by raising the stamp duty threshold to £500,000.

• A £8.6 billion boost for infrastructure, decarbonisation and maintenance projects – including our £2 billion Green Home Grant.

(HMT, Plan for Jobs, 8 July 2020, link).

• We are putting jobs at the centre of our economic recovery from coronavirus. We are accelerating £5 billon of investment to help rebuild Britain across the UK, putting jobs, skills and infrastructure investment at the heart of our economic recovery post-coronavirus, and delivering on our manifesto pledges to level up the entire country (Prime Minister’s Office, Press Release, 30 June 2020, link).

• We have taken unprecedented action to support jobs and livelihoods across the UK with around £160 billion of support. This includes protecting 9.6 million jobs through the furlough scheme at a value of £35.4 billion, approving over 1.4 million Bounce Back loans worth over £35 billion and putting an extra £9 billion into the welfare system (HMT, Plan for Jobs, 8 July 2020, link; HMRC, Coronavirus Statistics, 4 September 2020, link; HMT, Business loan scheme statistics, 18 August 2020, link).

Sir Keir Starmer has made a screeching U-turn on furlough in the last 24 hours:

• Just yesterday, Sir Keir called for an extension to the furlough scheme for some sectors, suggesting that it should be extended to those sectors for ‘five or ten years’. ‘I think most of the sectors are relatively straightforward - retail is a problem theatres, arts and culture is a problem, aviation and travel, we know the areas that are most affected, and what we've been saying is keep supporting for those areas for bit longer so they can turn the corner - tourism is another one, the tourism industry is closing down in September, October, and will reopen, we hope in March next year, they just need a bridge to get to next March. So don't end it all in one go. Because these are good businesses. These are businesses that are thriving, but they just can't thrive under the current rules. And I don't think it's fair to those businesses to say you're not the sort of business that we're going to need in five or 10 years time because we want tourism in this country not seriously saying, oh, that that's going to go and we don't want it back or aviation and building of aeroplanes’ (LBC, 14 September 2020, link).

• However, less than a day later, Sir Keir said the government should ‘replace the furlough scheme’. Labour’s press release says: ‘While Labour has always said the furlough scheme cannot go on forever, the party has consistently warned of the dangers of a one-size-fits-all removal of support from businesses and people still impacted by coronavirus restrictions. Starmer is expected to say that ‘with a bit of imagination and acting in the national interest, a better approach is possible’’ (Labour Press, 14 September 2020, link).

Labour cannot be trusted when it comes to jobs and employment:

• No Labour government has ever left office with unemployment lower than when it started, meaning more people were denied the security of a regular wage. From May to July 1997 to March to May 2010, the unemployment level increased from 2.1 million to 2.5 million (IFS, 26 May 2017, link).

• Youth unemployment rose by 45 per cent under Labour. In February to April 1997 there were 652,000 unemployed 16 to 24 year olds. By February to April 2010, this had risen by 287,000 to 939,000 (ONS, Labour Market Statistics, 18 March 2015, link).