Topical Questions — House of Commons, 2019-07-16
Topic: Education
Questions: The introduction of the national living wage has helped to raise the living standards of many of my constituents. What assessment has the Minister made of the impact of increasing the national living wage from 60% to 66% of median earnings and the ability of the retail sector to continue to grow its workforce considering that change?; Do Ministers agree that improving the whole A303, A30 and A358 corridor would remove a significant barrier to growth across the south-west and North Devon?; Do Ministers support the Treasury’s proposed VAT rise to 20% for solar-based products, and what assessment have they made of its impact on installations?; Hundreds of small businesses—particularly retailers, perhaps—stand to benefit from Mansfield’s progress in the future high streets fund. I know that the Minister has to be impartial, although I am sure that behind closed doors Mansfield is his favourite bid. Would he be willing to meet me to discuss the bid and make sure that we get the right advice and the best possible bang for our buck to support those businesses?; Matthew’s Foods, which has served the Asian community in Glasgow North for nearly 20 years, is being threatened with electrical disconnection because it is disputing a £400,000 bill on an emergency tariff from British Gas. Jobs are at risk, even though the company tells me that it simply wants to pay a fair price for the utilities it has used. What powers does the Department or the regulator have to encourage both sides to come to an amicable solution?; The oil and gas industry has a vital role to play in achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2050. One way of doing so is by providing a commercial incentive for carbon capture and storage. Will the Minister outline what steps the Department is taking to see whether that could become commercially viable?; Could the Secretary of State respond to the findings of Citizens Advice that utility companies have overcharged customers by £24 billion over 15 years?; Does the Secretary of State agree that nuclear energy must be part of the decarbonisation of this country? Could he update the House on progress made with the regulated asset base financial model and the energy White Paper?; The St Rollox railway works in my constituency will close next Friday, with a loss of 200 jobs and ending 163 years of operation. While the Scottish Government have refused to renationalise the facility, Scottish Enterprise is actively seeking a new buyer for the site. Will the Secretary of State ensure that his Department is fully deployed to aid in that effort at all levels of Government?
Gregory David Clark (Conservative, Centre-right): The hon. Gentleman is absolutely right. It was a proud moment for all of us to have the commitment that Jaguar Land Rover has made. I know everyone is immensely proud not just of the history but of the future of that great company I join the hon. Gentleman in paying tribute to Lord Bhattacharyya, the regius professor of manufacturing at Warwick and the founder of the Warwick Manufacturing Group. I can announce to the House that, in recognition of his immense contribution, we are establishing two awards. The first is the Bhattacharyya award for collaboration between academia and industry, which will be a prize of £25,000 each year to the team who best show how industry and universities can work together. Because Lord Bhattacharyya was such a champion of inclusion and helped so many young people enjoy flourishing careers in engineering, we are establishing the Bhattacharyya engineering inclusion programme, working with school and further education college students in the west midlands. It will make available 80 bursaries a year for students from disadvantaged backgrounds to study engineering, and it will also support extracurricular activities to inspire the next generation of young people to study engineering.