Jonathan Reynolds MP: speeches 2025

Speeches

• 23 Jun 2025 · UK Modern Industrial Strategy · Hansard source

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  I very much welcome the question and the work that my hon. Friend has done. He has been an ally in ensuring that there are no problems around the defence sector being seen as a legitimate source of business investment and economic activity. We recognise why we need that in the national interest, but we should not in any way be squeamish about the contribution that defence makes because the deterrence value is a fundamental contribution to peace, as well as to economic security. I can tell my hon. Friend that the strategy commits us to double the amount of the defence budget that goes specifically to SMEs, rising to £2.5 billion a year. SMEs, in diversifying the defence supply chain and creating those opportunities, are absolutely a part of this strategy, and if he has any red tape to show me that we need to get rid of, let’s work together to get rid of it.

• 23 Jun 2025 · UK Modern Industrial Strategy · Hansard source

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  I welcome my hon. Friend’s question; he is right that VPAG is significant to the life sciences sector plan and that the industry is looking for resolution on it. The life sciences sector plan will be formally launched by Cabinet colleagues to coincide with the anniversary of the foundation of the NHS. Talks with industry are ongoing and we are trying to find a settlement, which I believe is possible. We should all recognise the economic benefits of the sector for his constituency, which he carefully outlined.

• 23 Jun 2025 · UK Modern Industrial Strategy · Hansard source

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  I am more than happy to tell my hon. Friend. We have breakdowns for every region going to every colleague; there is so much for each part of the UK that I could not possibly do it justice from the Dispatch Box. On his point about clean energy, there is so much money coming into the UK—and more in future—that it would be crazy to turn our backs on that. This is a major economic opportunity, as well as being about a safe, reliable, clean supply of energy for the UK, which is the basis of all economic activity. We can provide that while reducing energy bills for industry, so that is exactly the kind of consistent approach that this country has needed for some time.

• 23 Jun 2025 · UK Modern Industrial Strategy · Hansard source

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  First, let me congratulate my hon. Friend on her recent honour. [Hon. Members: “Hear, hear!”] I know that she is not one for a fuss, but it is inspiring, and it is great to see that recognition. My hon. Friend is right that access to finance is a pillar of the industrial strategy. For instance, in the spending review, the British Business Bank’s capacity was increased to up to £4 billion, and the maximum ticket it could write was increased to £60 million as part of that. We also had a huge increase in the capacity of UK Export Finance in the spending review—as my hon. Friend knows, the north-east is a huge exporting region and has the most positive balance of payments of any English region—and its direct lending capacity has increased as well. We now have a story on finance from UKRI and Innovate UK for innovative start-ups, to the British Business Bank for scale up and maturity, going to the National Wealth Fund, and UK Export Finance supporting every part of that journey. That comprehensive offer is detailed in this strategy document, and it will benefit all parts of the UK, including of course the north-east of England.

• 23 Jun 2025 · UK Modern Industrial Strategy · Hansard source

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  I am tremendously excited by the opportunity my hon. Friend outlines. There are many tools she will recognise in the strategy, including the funding for innovation and for local economic development, and particularly the new strategic sites accelerator—for the first time, land assembly, getting the grid and planning in place—so we have these opportunities for the kind of inward investment offers that we receive. My hon. Friend has a very exciting local proposition, and I am looking forward to working with her on it, but we need more of them.

• 23 Jun 2025 · UK Modern Industrial Strategy · Hansard source

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  I very much appreciate my hon. Friend’s question. She will see a whole range of tools in the place section that are available to both mayoral and non-mayoral areas, which will help to shape local economic plans. She will also see measures to attract inward investment and to strengthen its voice in all the regions, and a whole range of policies that speak directly to business. We are building on the tremendous history and expertise in her area; it will be good news across the board.

• 23 Jun 2025 · UK Modern Industrial Strategy · Hansard source

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  There are parts of the skills package that allow for short courses, more flexibility and more foundational apprenticeships, which I think speaks exactly to the challenge the hon. Gentleman puts. If he writes to me on any specific issues relating to the towns fund in his constituency, I will get those answers.

• 23 Jun 2025 · UK Modern Industrial Strategy · Hansard source

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  So fuelled by optimism am I today that even the shadow Secretary of State cannot bring me down. Having been in opposition for some time, I can say that, “This document is all rubbish and I welcome most of it,” is quite an exciting take on a response. The Conservative party has managed to oppose almost everything that the Government have done in their first year, including, in my Department, the Product Regulation and Metrology Bill, which the previous Government were planning to introduce had they remained in office, and the India trade deal, which they were negotiating but could not get across the line, so I welcome the small bits of positivity in his response. Everyone across the House should support the strategy. It is based on things that will not be secrets to hon. Members who spend time with businesses on constituency Fridays and at weekends. They will be told about skills, energy, access to finance and how local areas should have the powers to address the needs in their local economies. I hope that the shadow Secretary of State would recognise, in good spirit, that many of the problems that need to be addressed grew under the Conservative Government. For example, the fact that energy bills became so uncompetitive was a result of actions and decisions of the Conservative Government. We are fixing that problem, in order to make a difference. On skills, one in eight young people are not in education, employment or training, while net immigration is at 1 million. That is not a policy success. It needed to be addressed. We needed to address, too, the failures on the funding of courses such as engineering. That was such an obvious need for our sectors. Finance is one of the longest-running problems; we are all familiar with it. The shadow Secretary of State asked a number of questions, and I am more than happy to answer them. On small businesses, if he reads more of the detail when he has a bit more time, he will see that small and medium-sized enterprises play a vital role in the creative industries and defence sector plans. To anyone who asks, “What’s the message to businesses that are not in sectors covered by the industrial strategy?” I say that they will benefit from people having good jobs and high incomes. Whether they are in hospitality, retail or leisure, they will see a direct benefit from the strategy. The small business plan will come out in July, and it will deal with issues such as late payment, business support and access to the kinds of tools—rental auctions and so forth—that will make a difference on the high street. The shadow Secretary of State attacked net zero. That is a mistake. Why would we turn our back on billions of pounds of investment and all the benefits it could bring? In particular, becoming a country that is not so reliant on volatile foreign gas prices is an obvious thing that we would not want to turn our back on. He seemed to announce a new Conservative position of opposing CBAMs, which deal with carbon leakage and create a level playing field. I am surprised by that, because the previous Conservative Government were strong advocates of them. On the bioethanol industry, talks continue with the two plants most directly affected. Of course, they were in a challenging position before the US trade deal; the deal was not in itself the cause of that. They were losing money. If I intervene, I must have a route to profitability, and that is the basis of those conversations. We are committed to precision breeding. Businesses that moved to France would find a more restrictive environment there because of EU regulation, so I would not recommend that. On OneWeb, there are some specific issues, about which I would be more than happy to talk to the shadow Secretary of State. On regulation, we have already taken decisive action, for example with a strategic steer to the Competition and Markets Authority, which has been warmly welcomed by businesspeople. They ask me for more of that, and that is exactly what we intend to bring forward. Finally, let me say, because I know that this is so important to colleagues, that I am more than happy to offer a briefing to any Front-Bench spokesperson or group of colleagues across the House. There is so much in the strategy that will make a difference and so much detail worth sharing, and I would be more than happy to do so with colleagues. Let us all get behind the strategy and get behind British industry.

• 23 Jun 2025 · UK Modern Industrial Strategy · Hansard source

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  I thoroughly agree with my hon. Friend. It is brilliant to see her in Parliament as she has been a trailblazer on these issues, and I recognise the case that she has put forward extremely well. I recognise that this is a core economic priority for the United Kingdom, and it is great to see her as an advocate for that on the Government Benches.

• 23 Jun 2025 · UK Modern Industrial Strategy · Hansard source

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  Well, I think that was a positive response to the industrial strategy. It certainly sounded like there were some positive themes there. The hon. Member asks a reasonable, specific question about her constituency, and I will check that with officials and write to her so that she has the correct information. If she has had a chance to look at it, she will see that the strategy includes big commitments to the advanced manufacturing R&D budget for a whole range of sectors. We are putting in the money that perhaps was not as firm as it is now in the national finances, but we also have long-term plans in many of those sectors around quantum, advanced manufacturing and aerospace 10-year settlements, for example, to give the kind of assurance and consistency we really need, but I will get her the specific answer she needs.

• 23 Jun 2025 · UK Modern Industrial Strategy · Hansard source

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  Yes, our officials are in close contact with all our partners in all the devolved Governments. We respect policy differences through devolution, but the kinds of things we are addressing are of interest to every part of the UK.

• 23 Jun 2025 · UK Modern Industrial Strategy · Hansard source

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  Derby has an incredible pedigree in engineering skills. I agree with the case that my hon. Friend has made so strongly. I have added some funding from my own Department to that from the Department for Education around engineering, because the shortages are so acute and the opportunities so great. These are great jobs, careers and lives for young people or anyone transferring into that sector, with more funding for the courses, more flexibility in the courses that can be run and more capacity in technical excellence colleges. Although it is also about availability in all parts of the country, we could not get a better pedigree than my hon. Friend has in Derby, which is a great success story for this country and for her local area.

• 23 Jun 2025 · UK Modern Industrial Strategy · Hansard source

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  I say to my hon. Friend that I think Ceramics UK is misplaced in that criticism. Ceramics is recognised as a foundational sector: it is part of the materials foundational sector in the strategy. Its principal request is about energy prices. There are some ceramics businesses—I accept not that many—that get the supercharger and that will get the more generous rate. But fundamentally, the costs of a lot of those businesses do not match the intensity test, which the supercharger is based on—a sectoral and then an individual business test. That is exactly why the British industrial competitiveness scheme has been designed in such a way that they will benefit from it, and that will be a game-changer for them. There are not the same policy tools around gas prices, but of course we can see that gas prices are projected to fall from the very significant level that they have been at for future financial years.

• 23 Jun 2025 · UK Modern Industrial Strategy · Hansard source

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  I very much welcome my hon. Friend’s comments in welcoming the strategy. There is a great deal that I could go through. I would get in trouble with you, Madam Deputy Speaker, if I mentioned the benefits for every sector in the document, but I think we would all recognise the pressure on the ceramics sector through energy prices—much of the industry is gas-intensive, and there are not policy tools for dealing with that in the same way. Only a small number of ceramics businesses currently benefit from the supercharger—I think only eight in total—which is why the test for the British industrial competitiveness programme is a different one. There will be a proper process to assess thresholds and eligibility, but it is designed in such a way that foundation sectors—ceramics is very much included in the material side of that—would get the benefit of the programme.

• 23 Jun 2025 · UK Modern Industrial Strategy · Hansard source

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  I recognise the case that the hon. Gentleman makes. Some of the courses that we need and that are central to our economy—engineering is a good example—are more expensive to put on and need greater capacity. When I talk about a funding package, it is to deliver the business-led, needs-led courses to which he refers, and I would expect Harrogate college to feel the benefits of that.

• 23 Jun 2025 · UK Modern Industrial Strategy · Hansard source

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  I thank the hon. Member very much for his work. I think the whole House knows of my personal interest in steel and the measures we have taken, including the recall of Parliament and the passing of the Steel Industry (Special Measures) Act 2025 that was required to save his constituents’ jobs. He is right that the investment required in some of the most electricity-intensive opportunities of the future—electric arc furnaces, for instance, were we to go down that route at Scunthorpe —requires the kind of programme that the enhanced supercharger level will get to because of the measures outlined in the strategy. There is not yet a plan for transition at Scunthorpe. As the hon. Member knows, we have taken control, but we need to resolve the issue of ownership. We continue to run the plant in a way that minimises losses to the taxpayer. That has meant putting more money in up front to run it at full capacity, which I think he will very much support. We will continue to work with anyone in the local area, including him and my hon. Friend the Member for Scunthorpe (Sir Nicholas Dakin), to ensure that there is a bright future for the steel sector. I believe that will be possible based on the policy environment we are putting in place.

• 23 Jun 2025 · UK Modern Industrial Strategy · Hansard source

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  There is the true voice of Scotland—it is fantastic to hear that optimism and pride for the future. My hon. Friend is right that there are huge advantages for her constituents in this strategy, which commits the kind of quantum of funding on a long-term, committed basis on R&D, which cuts industrial energy prices and does things across the board. There is so much that is part of the strategy. If I were to break down each of those sectors, I could be here for hours. You would probably get upset with me, Madam Deputy Speaker, if I read out each of the measures that are part of the strategy. As I said in answer to the previous question, when we are doing a national industrial strategy, we—entirely rightly—have to respect the devolution settlement, and there are some supply-side areas of industrial strategy that I as the UK Secretary of State do not have control over. It is right to reflect that, to build on that where we can and to work in partnership where we can. There are things I would like of the Scottish Government. If we think of Scotland’s tremendous pedigree in civil nuclear power, all that investment is denied to Scotland because of the policies of the Scottish Government. I have my frustrations, but I will work together where we are able to do so to produce the best outcome for Scotland.

• 23 Jun 2025 · UK Modern Industrial Strategy · Hansard source

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  It was a pleasure to see my hon. Friend this morning with my right hon. Friends the Prime Minister and the Chancellor. I was absolutely blown away by that facility, not just by the obvious “big name” investment from the companies there, but by the young people in particular. Of course, we are trying to deliver a strategy for business, and that requires businesses to have access to the pipeline of people, talent and skills that they need. Within that story, there are so many opportunities and careers for young people. I find that absolutely inspiring. Having an offer for the kind of apprentices and advanced manufacturing we saw today, alongside pride in our service and creative sectors and what we are doing on defence, is all key to ensuring that there are not just the things we need as an economy, but equities and opportunities for young people, as there should be in every part of the UK, to get the lives that they deserve.

• 23 Jun 2025 · UK Modern Industrial Strategy · Hansard source

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  It is important for colleagues to understand that the modern industrial strategy published today provides a tool through which other non-economic Government Departments can filter their own policy decisions, in a way that is consistent and to the benefit of UK business. For instance, the Home Office will publish its exemptions to the more restrictive skilled worker visa in relation to what the sectors set out in the strategy need and, for the first time, decisions will be made through that lens. My hon. Friend mentions a specific piece of work by colleagues in the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero on the workforce strategy, to which they are committed. I do not have a timescale for that, so I will ensure that I or colleagues write to him about it. The prize here is genuinely joined-up Government. To be frank, the preparation of the strategy has not always been easy, but it is the kind of consistent approach to policy, competition and competitiveness in the UK that is very important.

• 23 Jun 2025 · UK Modern Industrial Strategy · Hansard source

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  I am getting the impression that you would like more brevity from the Front Bench, Madam Deputy Speaker, so I will just say that the skills packages will put more funding into courses, and the flexibilities required on those courses that matter, with more capital funding for technical excellence colleges, while ensuring that that is available to every part of the UK.

• 23 Jun 2025 · UK Modern Industrial Strategy · Hansard source

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  I thank my hon. Friend for his question, which I greatly appreciate. Worcester plays a wonderful role in our economy, and it is great to hear about that level of local ambition from him and other local leaders. There are specific funds to support innovation: £500 million has been allocated for innovation, which will be split among areas up and down the country. The access to finance provisions will also apply to his constituency, whether that is the British Business Bank having more firepower and more ability to support the kind of items that he has in his constituency, the beefed-up capacity for UK export finance, or the National Wealth Fund working hand in hand with the private sector. The brilliance that my hon. Friend has in Worcester is exactly the kind of platform that stands to benefit greatly from the measures in the industrial strategy.

• 23 Jun 2025 · UK Modern Industrial Strategy · Hansard source

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  I thoroughly thank my hon. Friend for her question and for all her work in her role in Parliament advocating for these issues. There is a huge amount in this strategy for the sectors that she outlines. I was very proud of the work that we did with Hitachi. On cars, it is about the tariffs, the Drive 35 programme, energy costs and the ZEV mandate, and we will make any changes that we need for a competitive position. This is fundamentally about what business needs, but it is also about better-paying jobs in every part of the UK. My hon. Friend’s part of the world in particular will stand to benefit considerably from this programme.

• 23 Jun 2025 · UK Modern Industrial Strategy · Hansard source

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  I understand the point that the hon. Gentleman makes. This was the question that faced the nation at the time of the referendum. If a country leaves a single market and customs union, there will of course be economic consequences, particularly when there is the free movement of people, but that is the decision the country took. Let’s look to the future, not the past. We could have this argument forever. We would have a situation where the business uncertainty created by never fundamentally coming to a settlement on Brexit would in itself become as big a problem as the impact of leaving the single market that he talks about. Of course, if we were in a customs union without being part of the EU, could a G7 economy subcontract that area of policy entirely to other countries and not have control of a key aspect of our economy? Honestly, I do not think that is reasonable. I appreciate the Liberal position is almost certainly to go back into the European Union—there is consistency there—but I say again that doing so would mean, for instance, denying us the benefits of the India trade deal and services access to India, the reduction of tariffs on agriculture, whisky and cars, and the benefits of the US agreement, which has saved tens of thousands of jobs.

• 23 Jun 2025 · UK Modern Industrial Strategy · Hansard source

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  I thank my hon. Friend for her question and for her championing of that sector, which is significant for her constituency. Part of the approach in the industrial strategy is to recognise eight sectors that are very important—those that have an analytical base—and focusing some attention on them, but it covers those foundational sectors as well. As she has said, other sectors would include steel, chemicals, critical minerals, composite materials, electricity networks, ports and construction. We need the foundations in place if we are to have the kind of success that we are looking at, and I look forward to continuing to work with her on that.

• 23 Jun 2025 · UK Modern Industrial Strategy · Hansard source

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  Well, I think there is no comment I can make on that. I would say, first, that I imagine that that business has been doing very well in the last few days—anyone selling ice creams has probably seen a pretty solid demand for their products. The hon. Member makes a really good point, though; there is a lot of support for exporting, and businesses do not always know where to find it. The business growth service, which will be part of the small business plan, is an attempt by Government to bring together a single portal of information—to digitise, with a single digital login ideally, all the interactions that businesses have with the UK state. I want to bring together our considerable export offer, along with the export academy and the expertise that we have in markets, to make things very clear, so that a Member of Parliament like her visiting a business can simply say, “This is where you need to go. This is all the resource available, and I can raise any other issues with the Secretary of State.”